Dark Storm Dawn
by Lord Akiyama
Summary: The highly anticipated sequel to Fantasia Crisis. The twelve are targets to a guild that wants to take them down one by one. FINALLY COMPLETED! Keep in mind of the PG13 rating... seriously... please.
1. Chapter One

Dark Storm Dawn

by Lord Akiyama

The follow-up to "Fantasia Crisis"

* * *

Chapter One

"Check," Yen Sid said as he placed the bishop piece upon the appropriate square. The master of masters looked up at his opponent with a light grin on his face, hoping to catch the other in a tight predicament.

Chernabog studied the board and sighed as he begun to strategize his next move. He glanced every once and a while at the wizard across from him, his mood unchanged as the bitter and powerless being trapped within his eternal prison. "You seem to be finally grasping the concept of chess, old man," he muttered aloud. "And it only took you a year of almost endless play to do so."

"Making excuses already, Chernabog?" Yen Sid chuckled. "If anything I have learned from the year of play we have had is that you complain every time you are about to lose."

"If not for the fact that you are a goody-two-shoes, I would claim the game was rigged," the demon spoke. "But then you would have to take into account that I still have more victories over you than loses."

"Yet slowly this old man is catching up," the wizard chuckled. "For the last nine games, I have been the victor eight times while you were just barely victorious in the fifth game."

"Is it not fun to finally start gloating a limbless being?" Chernabog said sarcastically. "Oh wait, this conversation is not about who is better than whom. It is about killing the boredom that is waiting for me to finally make my move, is that not right old man? Well, then here is my move! Queen overtakes bishop!" At those words, the queen piece belonging to Chernabog magically began to move toward the bishop piece and knock it over.

"You still have much to learn about controlling your temper, Chernabog," the wizard chuckled as he picked up his queen piece and moved it within striking range of his opponent's king piece. "Check mate."

Chernabog studied the board to confirm that Yen Sid was victorious. Moments later, he growled in dissatisfaction as his slammed a fist against the bottom potion of his spherical prison. "Blasted wizard!" he grumbled. "Your foolish blabbering threw off my concentration!"

"More excuses, I see," Yen Sid laughed. "My oh my, the tide certainly has changed the last month or so in our gaming." It was then that a pair of knocks was heard at his door. "Perhaps a little break is in store before that temper of yours continues to cloud your thinking," the wizard continued as he stood himself up and made his way to the door. "Facing an opponent who does not have control over his emotions hampers the enjoyment of the game."

Yen Sid gently opened the door. Normally he would be expecting his apprentice to appear on the other side. Instead, his was face to face with the firing end of a musket. "Trick or treat," a voice from behind the weapon spoke. And then all went dark for the master of masters.

Chernabog watched as Yen Sid nearly flew backwards, ramming into one of the many bookshelves that covered the walls. He watched as the wizard struggled to stand himself up and attempt to clear his vision. The demon watched as two gunmen entered the room. One was loading his weapon, no doubt the one who fired. The other got down to one knee and fired his weapon. He watched the old man get hit hard in the stomach, knocking him back against the bookshelf before collapsing on the ground.

The first gunman ran over to the fallen body, positioned to fire again if needed. He then dropped down to check the wizard's pulse. "Unconscious," he said with a hint of laughter. "This was a lot easier than I thought. The master of masters taken down perfectly by two shots."

"If not for the fact that he is needed alive, it would've been quite the kill," the second gunman said. "Now hurry up before the others notice."

"Well thank you very much gentlemen," Chernabog spoke quite the sudden surprise of the two gunmen. "You just so happened to be taking away the one person who kills the boredom produced for being imprisoned liked this."

The gunmen were quite alarmed for a moment before realizing who it was and the current state the demon was in. "Such sacrifices are a necessity in order to complete our missions successfully," the second gunmen said. "Just be glad that I'm not allowed to shoot you just for sport."

"Your bullets would not have been able to penetrate my skin, you idiot," Chernabog said. "The only weapon that could harm me in locked in a stone that only one person can remove. And neither of you fit such a description. Since we are having this wonderful chat, I might as well leave a message for your boss."

"Be quick about it," the first gunman said, hoisting the unconscious Yen Sid upon his shoulders. "We should have been out of here two minutes ago."

"Oh, this one is an important one, I can assure you," the demon grinned. "Tell that parasite that I know what game he plays and the manner to which he is using to secure a victory. The question is whether or not he understands the result should he be successful."

"What are you blabbering on about?" the second gunman asked curiously.

"If he knows the answer to my question, then perhaps he will gladly share it with you," Chernabog said. "As much as I wish to continue talking so that I can kill the boredom, go away before you annoy me any more than you already have."

The gunmen looked at one another dumbfounded. A moment later, they shrugged and dashed off out of the room and away from the demon's presence. Chernabog sighed and appeared to slouch as best as he could given that he is missing limbs below the waist. It wasn't long before he groaned with dissatisfaction. "Not a minute has passed and already I am bored..." he muttered aloud.

"They have the wizard," a near raspy female voice spoke. "I'm impressed."

"As you should be," a commanding male voice said. "They are the two best hunters that can be found on this planet and they have a reputation of always finding a way to take down their prey swiftly and quietly. And it didn't hurt that the wizard was occupied with playing chess all the time."

"You do realize that they won't be able to nab all twelve," a second male voice spoke. "As soon as a few of them get picked off, they will be more prepared or possibly go into hiding in that 'mystic realm' of theirs."

"Which is why we hired the mercenary, Captain," the first male voice said. "For someone who is supposed to be the most experienced to have encounters with the twelve, you seem to be quite the nervous one Captain Hook."

"Maybe it's because these things don't ever end well for us," Captain Hook said with a glare. "If they could take down Chernabog, the odds are great that this thing won't succeed."

"Perhaps the reason why that campaign failed in the first place is because of some God who wouldn't take sides," the female said. "I just hate it when people don't do what they are supposed to. They remind me of Kronk, that moron of a servant."

"Hey, don't everyone blame the Lord of the Underworld all at once, huh?" a voice suddenly spoke. "You know how it is, those in power fight for control and poor little ol' me is forced to know the consequences for taking sides. So I went with option C and took control myself and let the players make their move, nothing for everyone to cry about. Too bad we couldn't have a barbeque in the mix because you know how much of a party animal I am."

"Be gone, devil!" the first voice ordered. "I banish you for the house of our lord!"

"Dude, do you know who you're talking to?" the mysterious figure laughed. "I'm Hades, Lord of the Underworld. God of the Greeks, not Catholics. We don't have anything called Christianity. Just more Gods than anyone knows what to do with. And because I'm not a creature of your faith, I can appear in this place whenever I want. I can even do anything!" With a poof of smoke, a top hat and cane appeared in Hades' hands. "Hello my baby, hello my honey, hello my rag time gaaaaaaaaaaaal."

"Great, even more trouble from the 'wild card' of whatever battle," Captain Hook moaned. "Why should we suffer your foolishness to begin with?"

Hades disappeared and quickly reappeared behind Captain Hook, minus the top hat and cane. "Because I just wanted to tell you guys that I have a ringside seat to the biggest extravaganza this side of Athens," he grinned. "Also, I figured I needed to be sure you people were serious about what you guys are doing before I take my seat."

"We are banishing this world of cruel wizardry and witchcraft," the first voice said proudly. "These heathens represent everything against the will of our lord, and nothing will detract us."

Hades grinned wider than ever as he moved towards the speaker. "Well then, Judge Claude Frollo," he said. "I guess I'm going to get my money's worth. I'd wish you luck, but that's just not my style nowadays. Especially with guys who find no sense of humor in others. Might as well get back on down to the little hole in the ground, I mean, I still got plans for April and the floor to mop. So much to do, so little time, right? Adios!" Another poof and the Lord of the Underworld was gone.

"What was that all about?" the woman asked.

"For now it means nothing, Yzma," Frollo said, turning toward the table where an open book rested. "Let the mercenary know that he is to proceed with his first assignment immediately. And be sure to remind him that there are to be no fatalities."

"Any one coming?" Simba asked, sitting next to a closed door.

"No one yet," Amelia said, glancing over her shoulder from looking down the hallway. "Knowing Robin, he's probably spending time entertaining little children. Quite the caring one, he is."

"Very caring, indeed," Simba chuckled. He turned toward the opposite side of the room. "How is the dress, Sprite?"

The Spring Sprite giggled as she twirled herself, watching the long skirt follow along. "It's very cute, Simba," she said. "Thank you for the dress, Amelia."

"You should thank a Mrs. Sarah Hawkins if you ever get to meet her," Amelia chuckled, glancing back to look at the Sprite in the dress. "Robin is here now."

And with that, Robin Hood hopped in looking as if he accomplished a heroic deed. "Sorry for the delay, dear friends," he said proudly. "There were some children being read one of my many tales and I decided to appear for real, kindly giving them some of the riches I happened to have upon me."

The others laughed. "We're not surprised, but very kind of you to do so," Simba said. Then everyone fell a little quiet. "Well, I guess we better go in."

"Knowing Helga, I doubt she would be too pleased to see us," Amelia commented. "Especially after going through labor, take it from me."

"But it would be sad for the little child to not have so much love," the Spring Sprite said. "I'm sure in the end she would appreciate it."

"Kind of a long shot of that happen, I'm sorry to say," Robin chuckled, "but it wouldn't hurt to try."

"Then I guess we should get this over with," Simba said with a sigh and a chuckle. The others sighed as well just as Amelia walked over and opened the door.

* * *

to be continued... 


	2. Chapter Two

Dark Storm Dawn

By Lord Akiyama

The follow-up to "Fantasia Crisis"

* * *

Chapter Two

---

"Look, you've improved greatly, I will admit that," the ringmaster said, trying his best to muster a gentle smile, "but we already have three capable acrobats. I'm afraid you're going to have to stick with Dumbo for a little while longer."

"I see," she said softly, the light bowing of her head physically expressing her disappointment. She took a sigh. "Well... is it alright if I look around for a while? I was thinking that since we're not performing tonight, so..."

"Oh, sure sure, go ahead," the ringmaster said. "As long as you return by sundown for rehearsal, Madellaine."

"Yes, sir," she said with a small smile. "Thank you, sir. I will, sir." She watched the ringmaster give a gentle nod before returning to his office. With a deep breath, she turned and headed inward toward the city.

The sight was breathtaking. After seeing an endless series of cities that looked the same, it was quite astonishing to see something that breathed a different kind of life. It had that ancient look, yet was as lively as any modern city. The children laughed happily, the elderly offered kindness, the merchants ranted and raved about their merchandise. It was unlike any she had ever seen.

Bong, bong, bong. Madellaine quickly turned toward the direction of the ringing bells and was speechless. Notre Dame cathedral. The sight of it was more magnificent than she had ever imagined. All the stories from those in the circus who've seen it before paled in comparison to beholding the sight. Madellaine took one step in the direction of the cathedral and was quickly awed. It felt like taking the first steps to a magical place unlike any other. She took another step and soon found herself walking through the streets toward Notre Dame.

She looked up as the sheer size of the building before her was unbelievable. A smile came upon her face as she examined every inch of the outer wall. She stepped up to the front door and took a deep breath. Widening her smile, she entered the cathedral.

---

"Look, Melody! Here comes Sebastian!" Ariel giggled along with her infant daughter as she marched the crab plush on the side of the crib. The small child waved her arms about in the air as though she was trying to make a grab for the plush. Ariel smiled some more as she gently placed the plush on her daughter's chest.

"Oh dear me," Ariel said, mocking Sebastian's voice and mannerism, "Ah-ri-el gone and done had herself a daughter just like her." Melody continued to giggle along as Ariel played with the plush to mimic Sebastian's body movements of distraught.

"When you're older," Ariel said softly in her daughter's ear, "you'll get to meet the real Sebastian. And Flounder. And then, you'll get to meet your grandpa and all your aunties!" Melody squirmed with excitement. "Until then, it's time for the little princess to drink some healthy milk."

Melody continued to giggle as Ariel gently made her way out of the room with the crab plush in hand. As she walked through the doorway, something grabbed hold of her and covered her mouth. She was about to scream when the grip tightened. She then began to feel the texture of what was holding her and knew quickly that it wasn't human.

"Try ta move or do sometin' funny an it will get much worse than it already has," a raspy whisper said behind her. She tried her best to get a look at her captor, but was only to see a pair of golden eyes staring back at her. "Ya wouldn't want anytin' happ'nin' ta yer lil' lass an all, now would we?" The voice quietly became laughter. Ariel looked down to see a claw appear in the light as it lopped the head off the crab plush.

"Now that we have an understandin'," the voice said, "I believe we're late fer a lil' trip a long ways from 'ere." The figure pulled her into the shadows and they soon vanished. Moments later, Melody's crying echoed throughout the castle.

---

Mickey tried once more as he knocked on the door. "Master?" he called. "Are you in there? Is everything alright?" He waited and again heard nothing but silence from beyond the door. He turned with a shrug to Goofy and Donald. "This is strange, fellas," he said.

"Maybe he's sleeping, Mickey," Goofy said.

"He'd be awake by now with all the knocking Mickey's been doing," Donald said. "I say he's not in there and probably went out to do something."

"But the master has no need to leave without telling me," Mickey said with a worried look on his face. He turned back to the door and sighed. "He doesn't like it when people enter without his say so, but I'm willing to chance punishment to make sure he's in there."

Mickey slowly opened the door wide enough to peer his head in and look around. After a few moments, Goofy and Donald were startled when Mickey quite suddenly flung the door open. All looked upon the destruction in the room from broken objects to smashed furniture and scattered paper. Mickey immediately jumped in and look about in the hopes of discovering if his master was somewhere within the carnage. Goofy and Donald slowly followed along.

"Don't expect to find Yen Sid anywhere in the wreckage, pupil." The three turned to see a moody Chernabog in his prison staring at them with narrow eyes. "I must say that for a master wizard he easily fell for quite a simple trap as the one that took him from his solitude."

"Watch yourself, Mickey," Goofy said, immediately stepping in front of his friend. "He may of been responsible for all this." Donald also stepped in front of Mickey, expecting something bad to happen. Instead, Chernabog sighed and groaned.

"Like I could do anything in this foolish prison your master was so kind to place me in for eternity," he said. "Right now, I am not in the mood for any one at this time. I suggest you partake on some foolish quest to find your master and supposedly save the universe from doom."

They stared at Chernabog for a moment before they huddled together. "Alright boys," Mickey said, "you get in touch with the other sages and get them to pick up the twelve. We'll meet in the mystic realm. And hurry!" Goofy and Donald nodded and moments later the three of them vanished.

Chernabog groaned again, shaking his head. "Pathetic beings they all are..." he muttered.

---

The door opened as gently and as quietly as Amelia could make it before Simba peered his head in to take a look.

Helga raised her eyes from the gently cooing bundle in her arms. It was odd, but as tired as she was, it was as if her senses were even more exaggerated. There was something to be said for being responsible for someone so entirely helpless. As the door opened, she pulled her robe around a little tighter, but as the furry mane poked through, she relaxed a little.

"I didn't know news traveled that fast," she smirked.

"Anything's possible, right?" Simba chuckled as he quietly stepped in. "Granted, I'm not the only one." In followed Amelia, Robin, and a dressed and smiling Spring Sprite.

"Oh, not the sunshine brigade," Helga rolled her eyes, but the gentle smirk still played on her lips. "You really ought to be more careful about the company you keep," she said dangling a playful finger over the baby's nose. "Though I do appreciate you leaving the little monster with the camera at home, did you have to bring the fox?"

"I didn't want to miss this," Robin chuckled. As he moved forward, he noticed the sleeping body of Chris Jenkins on the chair with a large bandage over his right arm. "I take it that it wasn't gentle last night."

"What do you think?" Helga answered with a raised eyebrow. "Have you ever known anything about me to be gentle?"

"I sympathize," Amelia laughed. "Poor Delbert had scratch marks all over when I went into labor with the triplets."

"If you ask me, Jenkins got off easy," Helga nodded. "A few minutes of pain compared to a few hours? I think he got the better end of the deal."

The Spring Sprite quietly hovered over to the bed side to take a closer look at the baby. She couldn't help but giggle softly. "What's her name?" she asked in an almost child-like whisper.

"Alexandra," Helga replied softly pulling the blanket further away from her daughter's gently gurgling face. "We named her after my father."

"That's sounds very nice," Simba said, gently taking a closer look at the baby as well. "Never ceases to amaze me how much life is in such small bodies. Reminds me of my own daughter."

"I never thought of it much, until now..." Helga murmured lost in the living mirror she was holding. Thankfully, she had Jenkin's nose, but the strong jaw and high cheeks of her mother were already apparent. It was strangely disconcerting and wonderful all at the same time.

* * *

to be continued...

Thanks to GoblinQueeen, who provided the dialogue and some action for Helga.


	3. Chapter Three

Dark Storm Dawn

By Lord Akiyama

The follow-up to "Fantasia Crisis"

* * *

Chapter Three

---

The interior of the cathedral was hauntingly majestic. The cold air had the feeling of fright, yet the beauty within gave it this flare of wonder. Madellaine was complete utter awe of all that surrounded her as she stepped further into Notre Dame. Every imaginary thought she had of the cathedral before her entering was immediately discarded. It was better than she could have ever expected.

Bong, bong, bong. The bells echoed off the walls of Notre Dame and it was musically soothing. Madellaine looked about the empty cathedral, hoping her ears would help guide her in the direction of the stairs that would lead to the bells. A doorway, carved from stone, echoed the ringing of the bells the loudest, as if beckoning her to enter this way.

The echoing grew louder and louder as she ascended the stairs. A smile upon her face as she stepped more and more closer toward the ringing of the bells. It was not long before she reached her destination. Within, she could see the massive bells of Notre Dame. The beauty and majestic grace as they swung from one end to another, ringing their musical tune. No matter that she could barely hear herself at this point, it was as if she was listening to the sounds of heaven.

And then, the ringing came to a sudden stop.

Madellaine slowly looked at the bells curiously. They were not moving. She then remembered. There was someone called a bell ringer for a reason, silly, she said to herself. She giggled lightly at herself before stepping through, walking upon the wooden floor below her.

"Hello?" she called rather gently. "Is any one here?" There you go being silly again, she thought to herself. Of course someone's here. It's not like they walked past you just as the ringing stopped. She noticed a case of wooden stairs before her and slowly ascended them.

At the top, her attention was captured by what was before her. A table that was barely covered. Yet underneath that cover she could see what was attempted to be hidden. Carved wooden dolls, no bigger than the palm of her hand. She stepped forward quietly, staring with amazement at the remarkable craftsmanship. She looked upon a particular piece, one that looked like a little girl. She gently picked it up, examining every inch. A superb piece of work. It appeared the bell ringer had quite a talent.

A soft footstep heard from behind. Madellaine quickly turned. There was no one there. She looked around some more and what she found brought a light smile came upon her face. "Are you... hiding from me?" she gently said, placing the doll back on the table. She walked away from the table, but closer to where the footsteps came from. She giggled upon finding a shadowed figure attempting to hide from within one of the bells, unaware that his legs were clearly visible.

"Uh... no..." a voice nervously spoke from underneath the bell. To Madellaine, the voice sounded like a gentle male probably as shy as a young child. "... what's so funny?" the voice asked.

"Nothing," Madellaine replied, barely trying to cover her mouth from laughing. "It's just... from here it looks like you're wearing a really big hat." She laughs some more before stopping quite suddenly. She barely knew the person and her words may have come off as harmful to him. "Oh... that sounds silly doesn't it."

"N-no," the voice replied, still underneath the bell. He voice began to sound as though he was about to chuckle. "I just never thought of it that way before." He began to laugh with jolly.

Madellaine smiled and giggled along. "Yes, it's a... a brass beret," she said. "A... a two ton topper!"

The voice chuckled along, lightly ringing the bell from within. "A... a chapeau in C-sharp!"

The two began to laugh along with great glee and delight. Madellaine looked to the side in the hopes of coming up with something else to say when she gasped in near terror. The voice himself stopped laughing as if in great concern. Madellaine took a step back and breathed deeply. "I... I'm sorry," she said. "I... I just saw a few gargoyles and I..." She stopped in place and hung her head. "That... that was dumb, wasn't it."

Madellaine turned as started walking back in the direction of the table. She heard footsteps and took a small glance to see the figure, still covered in shadow, follow along on a wooden beam up high. She sighed and stood in place. "You must think I'm stupid," she said gently.

"Oh... oh, not at all," the voice replied nervously. She paid little attention as the figure hopped from one shadowed spot to another. "That... that just means you have an imagination." The tone of his voice was gentle and rather understanding.

Madellaine gently lifted her head up. "Do you... do you really think so?" she asked, almost in a pleading manner. She slowly turned, catching the motion blur of the figure leaping from his spot on the beam down to her level and dashing quickly behind a giant statue head.

"I do," the voice replied softly.

Who is he, she began to wonder. A light smile came over she face as she watched the figure remain in shadow while capturing glances at her figure, standing perfectly within the beams of sunlight that pierced through the windows. "Well..." she began to say, gently outstretching her arm toward the figure. "... wouldn't you like to come where I can see you?"

The figure motioned back just an inch, a sign of shyness she was familiar with. Madellaine turned her head slightly, seeing a loose curtain hanging next to her. She took a glance at the nervous figure before pulling the curtain back. It was enough to shine a beam of sunlight upon the figure.

Madellaine covered her mouth in sheer horror. He was standing perfectly still, yet it was as if his upper body completely hunched forward. His arms were massive, like the upper forearm of a gorilla. And the face... his face was disfigured beyond repair.

Madellaine took slow steps backward before turning and dashing toward the steps. She was about to take a step down when she suddenly paused. She breathed heavily while every other inch of her body was frozen. After what seemed like an eternity in place, she slowly turned her upper body. And then she swallowed and turned her head to face the creature.

He was trying to cover himself with his upper arms. Covering himself not just from the sunlight, but from being seen period. She recognized this. The circus used to have a section of people who were... well, freaks. Disfigured or inhumane in such a way that set them apart from everyone else. She remembered how many of them would hide in horror, hoping to not be seen. She remembered the sadness upon their faces. How they wanted to just be accepted and not looked upon with fear or laughter.

He didn't move an inch before Madellaine finally decided to move. She slowly moved toward him. She kept walking, though rather nervously. He kept still, not even to shiver. Madellaine finally stopped when she was within the same sunlight beam as he was. Gently she lifted her hand and placed it upon one of his massive arms. She could barely see him opening his eyes slowly. Shivers ran through is body and then through her hand. She began to feel his shivers, but she herself didn't. He then lowered his arms, his face clearly visible in the light.

The look on his face was of the exact sadness she remembered. All they wanted was to be accepted. She gave him a light smile. "My name is Madellaine," she softly spoke in a gentle tone. "What's yours?"

He looked away a little before slowly turning his attention back to her. He looked at her smile, her gentle face. A face that asked to be forgiven for misunderstanding. He tried to return a light smile of his own. "Quasimodo..." he whispered.

---

"The Fairy Godmother, Rafiki... you really did call for all the mages, didn't you Mickey?" Merlin asked with a slight grin. "Must be some sort of special reason to do just that considering we all barely have anything to do nowadays."

"It's a big one, alright," Mickey said. "It's an emergency. Yen Sid's missing and there's enough evidence to conclude that he's been kidnapped."

"Kidnapped?!" the ladies cried. The men's eyes shot wide open in disbelief. The idea that the master of masters having been kidnapped is not fathomable.

"You think that Chernabog fellow had something to do with this?" Clopin asked.

"That's what we thought," Mickey replied, shaking his head. "But he can barely do anything in the current state he's in. No, this is an outside job and someone wanted to take him out. Problem is, we don't know who."

"Could it be that God who caused all the worlds to combine as one?" Fauna asked.

"Lose too much after gaining so much from taking no sides," Rafiki said. "No, a spectator he would rather be."

"Nevertheless, I think it would be a good idea to question him," Merlin said. "He always seems to know something that practically everyone else are not even close to thinking about. Makes me rather curious as to where in the blazes he gets his information, now that I think about it."

"Perhaps we should inform the twelve of this," The Fairy Godmother said. "Perhaps they could be of assistance in figuring out where to find him and how to free him from whatever debacle he is in."

Before anyone else could reply, Rafiki's eyes shot wide open as if in a state of horror. "Or there be the possibility that if the master of masters is taken, so can they." Such an idea was not thought about at first before Rafiki spoke those words. Everyone began to fall in a state of terror.

"What are we standing around for?" Merryweather cried. "We have to go out there and find them before the something terrible happens to them."

"Five easily be found," Rafiki said. "Simba and three others are visiting Helga. I'll go get them." And with that, Rafiki disappears. The others nod and begin to map out where the others potentially are.

Before Mickey could insert himself in the conversation, he felt a tug on his shirt from behind. He turned and looked down to see a familiar face. Yet... he didn't look familiar one bit. "... Cheshire Cat?" he asked.

"Pardon my intrusion and my rather ungentlemanly appearance," the Cheshire Cat spoke, his voice sounding more serious than usual. "But perhaps you can be of assistance in resolving a disease that has plagued Wonderland."

---

"Stay inside until I return," Beast said. "I don't like the smell of this." The snow was gently falling, but it did nothing to stop the smell he could whiff that polluted the air. At least, it did to him.

"Tell me what's wrong," Belle begged. "I want to help any way I can. I can help."

"I know you can," he said, taking her hand in his and gently squeezing it for reassurance. "But then I would have to be worried about your safety. Stay inside and I'll return."

Belle gave a gentle smile before nodding. She then stepped upon on her toes to kiss her Beast on the cheek before walking back into the castle, stealing a last glance before closing the door.

Beast turned his attention outward and took another whiff before leaping off the balcony and into the snow. The smell was getting stronger. He took steps forward as he followed the direction of the scent. And then he heard what he was waiting for. A shaking of bush leaves. Albeit a small one, he knew there was barely a wind blowing about and recognized when something was disturbing nature.

He leaped high enough to land behind whoever was in those bushes. As he touched the ground, he quickly rolled away before gunfire was shot. The impact landed close to the spot where he did. He looked up at his shooter. "If I wasn't paid to bring you in alive, that would've killed you," the shooter said.

"You seem to have something against me," Beast said as he lunged toward his shooter. His foe rolled out of the away just in time to dodge a downward slash. "As if this was more personal long even before we meet."

"It's personal alright," the shooter said, quickly trying to reload while remaining in motion as he slowly sidestepped around Beast. "Belle was supposed to me mine."

Beast then cracked a small smirk. "So you're the buffoon she talked about," he said. "The hunter more disgusting than a pile of mud. The one named Gaston, I presume." Before anything else could happen, his ears reacted on instinct to a click behind him. He leaped to the side moments before a gunshot was heard.

"Stop talking and just shoot the blasted thing!" the second shooter said as he quickly began to reload. Beast took a quick look at him and studied carefully before moving. This shooter was older and appeared to be more experienced than the Gaston fellow. Perhaps the more threatening of the two.

"You try to remain calm in my shoes, Clayton," Gaston yelled as he finished reloading. "Belle was the finest girl and town and I should be the one marrying her. Not some animal of a beast."

"Look who's talking," Beast said as he leaped to one side. The shooters fired, missing their target. Just like he planned. Beast then made a leap toward the one Gaston called Clayton and successfully swiped the rifle out of his hands. Clayton rolled back and unsheathed his sword. Just then, Beast rolled to another side and kicked Gaston's rifle out of his hands as it was being reloaded. He swung his body to connect an upward slash. His claws didn't hit, but his forearm did.

Gaston went flying to the ground, nearly knocked unconscious. Beast then quickly ducked and turned his attention to Clayton, whose horizontal slash he dodged. Beast reared back for a quick second before lunging forward and tackling his attacker to the ground. The impact caused Clayton to release his sword.

"Nice toys," Beast said with a grin. "Too bad they weren't helpful even if you outnumbered me two to one. Now let's get to business before I stop being gentle and let my claws talk instead. Who hired you to capture me?"

Before anything else could happen, a gunshot was heard. It felt like the back of his right shoulder exploded as Beast roared in pain. Suddenly, he was starting to lose his focus. Worse yet, he was losing his vision. He glanced over and noticed Gaston was barely getting to his feet. Before darkness took him, he realized the mistake he made. There were three hunters. He dropped to the ground unconscious.

Clayton struggled as he freed himself from underneath Beast. He took a deep breath and watched as Gaston slowly approached him. They both looked down at the creature in the snow before looking in the direction of the shooter. "What took you so long?" Clayton said.

"Your mouths is what took me so long," the third shooter said, slowly approaching them. "Maybe it's time I stopped being the lookout for a change and take over for one of you ladies."

"You should've fired before he took us down, you bloody moron!" Gaston yelled. "Suppose you waited just another second longer. He would've recognized you and charged after you before you could even pull the trigger."

"If I fired too early, I would've missed and he would've been tipped off," the shooter said. "For a couple of hunters, you keep forgetting how to properly tell when it is the right moment to fire at your target. And they say the west isn't wild enough. Just be lucky I did fire when I had the chance, you pansies."

---

The Spring Sprite giggled along as she continued to weave together a crown of flowers. She took a small glance over to watch Simba expressing curiosity at the sight of a little human baby in Helga's arms. Robin was assisting Amelia is applying bandages to Chris's arm.

"Just don't over do the crown like you did for Kiara," Simba chuckled as he took a small glance over at the Sprite.

The Sprite giggled. "Don't worry, Simba," she replied. "She's going to have a very special one."

"Just don't make anything too flowery..." Helga hesitated as she glanced up. "I made a solemn vow that she would never have to put up with any of those oversized bows and things my mother was forever putting in my hair."

The Sprite giggled even more. "Okay," she cheerfully said and returned to working on the crown.

"Just be glad for your health's sake she wasn't giving birth to more than one child," Amelia said to Chris with a big grin. "The scratches on poor Delbert's back still haven't been healed from when I had to give birth to our four children."

"Ouch," Chris winced. "I can only imagine how badly I would've gotten it if Helga had to give birth to more than one child."

"Something you might do well to keep in mind," Helga replied with a small smirk, a slight edge of threat to her voice.

Simba chuckled. "Amazing what you learn from other species once you get to know them," he said. Before he could continue however, a familiar voice was heard. Along with it came some familiar words.

_"Asante sahna squash banana webe wu a webe wu..."_

"Rafiki?" Simba said, raising an eyebrow. "What are you doing here?"

"Look who's talking, Mr. Uninvited," Helga arched a brow at Simba. "Just how many people did you let this slip to?"

"I came at my own accord," Rafiki said. "Storm has arrived upon us and the twelve must gather upon the mystic plane quickly."

"What do you mean a storm has arrived," Robin said. "What's going on?"

"Something's happened to Yen Sid," Rafiki replied.

"Define 'something'," Helga returned, her voice remaining calm, but decidedly irritated.

"Something as in 'kidnapped', perhaps," the monkey replied.

"Kidnapped?" Helga repeated incredulously as she pulled her child in closer. "I thought he was supposed to be some kind of all powerful wizard?"

"That's why the apprentice is sending for the twelve and the mages to gather," Rafiki said, shaking his stick and causing the coconut shells to clatter together. "If someone could kidnap the master of masters, how easily can we all be captured. We must leave quickly."

Before anyone could respond either out of protest or agreement, a mist gathered over them. Moments later, the entire room was empty.

* * *

to be continued...

Thanks to GoblinQueeen, who provided the dialogue and some action for Helga.


	4. Chapter Four

Dark Storm Dawn

By Lord Akiyama

The follow-up to "Fantasia Crisis"

* * *

Chapter Four 

Step forward. Step back. Step forward. Step back. Step forward, left, right, left, left, forward, back, right, right, left, STOMP! Lilo and Stitch smiled wide as they let their feet follow the instructions on the screen, the techno music blaring out of the speakers at high velocity. Minutes later, Stitch took a wrong step and the two ditched the directions and danced about in their own rhythm. They laughed about before falling to the floor gently. All this before the selected track on Dance Dance Revolution ended.

While Stitch hopped about in laughter, Lilo took a look at the clock. For the past two hours since Nani left for work, they have been playing Dance Dance Revolution on her newly acquired Playstation 2. The clock read five minutes till noon. She exhaled with jolly before pushing herself off the ground and onto her feet.

"I clean up in here, Stitch," she said with a smile, "if you can make us one of your smoothies for lunch."

"Ooooooo," Stitch said before smiling and chuckling. Lilo laughed along as she watched him bounce off into the kitchen to mix together their lunch. Lilo sighed once more before turning off the Playstation 2 and changing the television back to normal setting. A local news report about what appeared to be some more potential UFO sightings have been marked all over the island. Jumba must be working on a new prototype or something, she thought.

CRASH!

Lilo stopped in place just as she was rolling up the dance pad. She looked over at the doorway that led to the kitchen. Stitch probably dropped something on accident, she thought. Then came a familiar growl from him. It wasn't a growl of frustration. It was one of deep anger. Suddenly, there was yelling. Stitch wasn't alone.

"Is everything alright, Stitch?" Lilo asked cautiously.

What replied was a series of crashes and screams. A quick flash of light came and went out of the kitchen. The camera's in there, she thought in realization. Seconds later, an even bigger crash was heard. Though it sounded much more like an explosion.

Lilo quickly popped up straight. Moments later, she took a step forward and then started running toward the kitchen. She stopped just out of the doorway's path. She rested herself up against the wall and slowly started to peer her head through. Soon enough, she just stepped to the side and looked in horror.

The entire kitchen was an utter mess. Nearly every little thing that was in this room was broken. Every glass, every plate, every piece of wood. And there was a large hole in the wall that led outside. It was just like when see saw Gantu for the first time as he tried to capture Stitch. She looked out the hole in the wall to see movement in the ground. It seems that whoever Stitch was fighting with took their battle outside and somewhere in the forest.

"Stitch?" Lilo said quietly. She stood in place for a moment, hoping beyond hope that Stitch was somewhere close and was going to return. That he was not in any real danger.

"Stitch?"

The waiting started to get to her. She was nervous that something did indeed happen to Stitch.

Finally, she couldn't wait any more and dared to venture after them. She stepped through the hole in the wall and took a look at the movement tracks on the ground. She took another step in the direction of the tracks. Moments later, she kicked up her speed and started to run after them.

A gentle whistle of wind blew through the house. As if appearing out of thin air, pixie dusts started floating in a downward motion just at the kitchen doorway. More pixie dust began to appear and soon they started to swirl. Seconds later, The Fairy Godmother appeared.

"Oh my goodness," she gasped as she looked at the sight of the kitchen. There was no doubt Stitch was attacked. She examined the hole in the wall a bit and noticed the tracks on the ground. Before stepping out to investigate further, something caught her eye.

Hanging on a doorknob was a camera. The Fairy Godmother looked at it for a moment and noticed something sticking out of it. It appeared that this camera had taken a picture. And it was quite possible that the photo might contain the identity of Stitch's attacker. She looked around for a moment before removing the photograph and examining the photo.

* * *

"You know Aladdin," Jasmine said with a smirk and her arms loosely crossed together, "they say that it is expected of the king to think less of personal glory and more about the welfare of his people. I'd imagine that your venturing to tombs and graves that such statement would not apply to you."

"Personal glory?" Aladdin responded with a smirk of his own, gently wrapping his arms around the the waist of his wife. "Now why would you say a silly thing like that? Of course I'm thinking about the welfare of our people. The fortunes and history we are discovering, all to benefit them."

"You're just lucky they these trips of yours are producing the gold and treasures to support your claim," Jasmine said, her arms uncrossing and gently wrapping around his husband's neck. "Otherwise, I would have to explain to them why their King died a foolish death to some trap in a tomb. How I am to govern without an heir."

"At least I'm cutting back on the number of ventures I take," Aladdin whispered in reply, his smirk still visible.

"And it's a good thing, too," Jasmine whispered back before planting a quick kiss on her husband's lips. "Because we both know how I am like when I do not have my husband to turn to when in dire need." The two shared a light laugh before sharing a longer and more passionate kiss. "So, what did you retrieve this time?"

"Aside from the usual assortment of treasure chests and gold Abu drools over," Aladdin replied, "we found a rather interesting book. Talks about something called the sands of time and some dagger that supposed to utilize these sands to manipulate time itself."

"Is that you talking or are you just repeating Genie's translations?" Jasmine giggled.

"A little bit of both," Aladdin chuckled in reply. "Well, mostly repeating Genie's translations, but I'm sure you can tell which of that statement belongs to me."

"Speaking of Genie," Jasmine said, "where is the happy bunch we call our friends?"

"They're on their way back with the last of the treasures," Aladdin replied. "The supply required two trips, surprisingly."

"So how much time do we have alone together?" Jasmine asked with a rather mischievous grin.

Clink. They turned their heads quickly, looking in the direction of the sound. They weren't alone in the room. Only problem was that whomever was also within did no want to be seen. Either the others had returned and were eavesdropping... or there was something else going on...

An explosion hit the wall just over their heads. They ducked instinctively and Aladdin dragged Jasmine along as they headed toward the nearest door. The explosion in front nearly caught him. Aladdin looked over, barely able to catch a shadow hiding in the pillars.

"Find a place to hide," he said to Jasmine, keeping his attention upon the pillars as he drew his sword. She didn't bother to argue as she nodded and headed for the throne.

Aladdin took a few steps forward and examined the pillars, in particular those hidden in shadows. He just caught the moving shadow out of the corner of his eye and moved before the explosion connected upon the spot he previously stood upon. He ran up against a wall, hoping off and grabbing hold of a hanging certain. With all his weight and force, he swung toward the nearest pillar. He leaped upon it and slid down, shift his body so that he circled around as much as he could before his feet touched the ground.

He ducked the in-coming swing of the object, watching it smash and shatter upon connecting with the pillar. He brought his weight back up and swung his sword in a vertical motion at the attacker. It was enough to rip through the clothing and leave a scar upon the body. The attacker nearly screamed before taking a step back. Aladdin charged and ran up upon the attacker and leaped forward. He spotted another attacker releasing something from his object and blocked quickly with his sword before his feet touched the ground. He spun around, his sword cutting the object in the second attackers hand. He continued to spin and extended his leg out, kicking the attacker into the pillar.

Instinctively, he hopped with a backward somersault. He managed to dodge another explosion from a third attacker. Upon landing on his feet, he rolled toward the attacker and rammed his shoulder into the attacker's stomach. The attacker dropped his object and staggered back into a pillar.

Out of the corner of his eye, he was able to catch the second attack pull out an object in each hand. Fire came out of each object and Aladdin was quick enough to block them with his sword.

"Those are not the guns we're supposed to use!" Aladdin turned to see the first attacker one knee and pull out a sword of his own. "We're paid to bring him in alive, not dead!"

"I distinctly remember him saying that we could use any means at our disposal," the second attacker said, his objects still pointed at Aladdin. "And last I remember, both my six rounders were recognized as being part of our disposal."

"Personally, I'd say we just take him down any way we can," the third attacker said, slowly reaching for an object hanging from his back. "At this point, I honestly don't care about the consequences should we kill him." Just then, his shoulder slammed into the pillar and he screamed in pain. All looked and spotted an arrow jammed into his body.

"I'm afraid to disappoint you chaps," a voice familiar to Aladdin spoke. They all turned to see a fox standing on two legs and ready to fire the arrow he had pulled. "But your harassing of my friend comes to an end."

* * *

"I recognize this creature," Amelia said upon examining the photograph. "His name is Scroop. A pirate who worked under one Mr. Silver. He vanished into the depths of space when he and Mr. Hawkins fought over the map that led us to Treasure Planet. We were hoping he was gone for good. It appears that is not the case."

Simba nodded as he turned to look about the mystic plane. It had not been any more than just a few hours since he and those visiting Helga and her family arrived. Since then he watched as Tarzan and his mate, Mulan, and Hercules appear just as bewildered as they were to the news that Yen Sid had been captured and they were now targets to this previously unknown captor. The Three Fairies returned with the grave news of Ariel's disappearance along with Clopin's report that Beast was gone. The Fairy Godmother returned with evidence of Stitch's capture at the hands of an individual Amelia was familiar with.

"Scroop is not the kind of person to do anything like this unless gold was involved," Amelia said with a sigh. "No, I believe Scroop is nothing more than a hired hand in all of this. Find the gold and we'll find the person responsible."

"Follow the money?" Helga muttered arching an eyebrow. "That's a lot easier said than done. Whoever is behind this isn't likely to leave us some nice bread crumbs to follow." She paused for a moment to soothe the child in her arms that could sense her mother's tension. "I can tell you from personal experience, there's is usually not a lot of formality to it. Client hands over the cash, job is done, end of story. You don't stop for tea and reminisce."

"Ms. Sinclair is right on that one," Amelia said. "Not to mention Scroop is one of those individuals who is very careful when it comes to not letting on who hired him."

"So that leaves us at another dead end?" Hercules sighed. "Well, that's just great. I still say we pay a visit to my uncle and try to knock some answers out of him."

"I doubt that would do us much good, Hercules," Simba said. "Even if what Mickey is saying is true in that Hades has no involvement in this, I doubt he'd be willing to offer us information just because. You know better than us, he'll want something in return."

"The question then becomes is what he has to offer worth the price," Helga added darkly.

Before any one could answer, the all too recognizable voice of Merlin's was heard echoing throughout the mystic plane. "Fiddle sticks that was a disastrous trip!" he started yelling, adjusting the positioning of his hat and making sure his beard wasn't damaged. "I swear, those rascals would've been nothing more than croaking toads if it were just a fair fight!"

"But it wasn't fair," another familiar voice said. This one belonged to Jasmine, clinging dearly to Aladdin's arm. "They were using everything they could to dodge and hide. I've never seen anything like it."

"They should consider themselves lucky they got away with just nips and scratches," Aladdin seethed through his teeth, wiping his blade with a cloth. "I'd like to take another stab at them just so they would realize who they were trying to mess with."

"Sounds like someone forgot to invite us to the party," Helga sneered.

"Oh, it was just plain terrible, I tell you," Merlin groaned as he took a seat in a chair he conjured. "We arrived just as Aladdin was under attack from three big-looking men carrying guns. Oh rather, rifles! And then the minute they saw me, one of them talked about getting a bigger pay if they nabbed me and started firing at me. And what they fired were not bullets, I can assure you! It's going to take time to examine, but I think this stuff has a serious effect on any person regardless of how powerful they are."

"Must be why Yen Sid was able to get kidnapped if that were the case," Simba said.

"Well, at least we were right that someone up the food chain is pulling the purse strings," Helga shrugged. "And that someone is not of the creative mind Chernabog was. Hunting down a wizard with guns? I don't care what's in them, it reeks of common street thug, not witch or sorcerer, or whatever else you people call yourselves."

"Most certainly not!" Merlin yelled as he lit his pipe. "Two of these gunmen sounded very European, one more so British by the sound of his voice, his posture, and his excuse for proper facial hair."

"Clayton," Tarzan said, noting a bit of anger in his voice.

"I wouldn't know, so I'm going to have to trust your word on that," Merlin said. "Any way, the other chap looked very western with that hat of his and that large dark coat."

"Oh sure, a cowboy," Helga rolled her eyes. "That'll be easy to track down. Not like any of them carry guns or anything. Hey Chris, we have a big lead to follow up on..." she droned sarcastically.

"Wait a minute, didn't he say something like 'we' arrived?" Chris said, raising an eyebrow. "Wasn't fox boy with you when you left, old man?"

Helga looked around suddenly noticing Robin's absence. "You didn't leave him behind...!" she practically shouted as she stared the wizard down.

Merlin paused for a moment before lowering his head. "No... not really..." he said quietly. "Although Robin was fast enough to dodge whatever it was those gunmen were shooting at us... they still had a trick up their sleeve. Just as I was able to get Aladdin and Jasmine out of there, Robin was trapped in a rope net the hunters seemed to have put together. Robin told me to get out of there before it was too late. His eyes told me that he was doing this for my safety as much as it was for Aladdin and Jasmine's."

Helga continued to glare, silently fuming for a pair of heartbeats. "Chris," she said quietly at last, "take Alexandra. I need my clothes and a gun."

"Whoa, wait a minute," Simba said as he watched Chris nervously take Alexandra from Helga. "We don't even know what we're going up against. And they're probably not there any more, taking Robin to where they've brought the others."

"Well I'm not about to sit here and do nothing, either," Helga spun back on him instantly aware that her anger shouldn't be directed at him, but he was the one that got in the way. "Besides, didn't you want to start tracking them? We can't shoot blind, we need to try to find some clues at least."

"I think that regardless of what we're going to do, it's only going to get much more difficult." Every turned their attention to the speaker. Mickey didn't look so pleasant. In fact, he looked much worse than when he discovered Yen Sid was missing. "It seems that the person responsible for all these kidnappings is also causing a dangerous affect on the planet."

"What do you mean?" Amelia asked curiously.

"A disease has plagued the world," a different voice spoke. It echoed through the mystic plane, causing everyone to look in every direction for the origin. To Simba, the voice sounded very similar to that of his uncle. "Chaos and destruction reign upon order and the innocent." Everyone was finally able to locate the speaker. He looked like a cat lacking of fur and whose skin is reduced down to his bones. And yet he still wore a grin that spread from ear to ear.

"Well, it would appear we all have our own problems," Helga stifled a growl as she looked at the disturbing creature.

"Actually, it has become part of our problem," Mickey said. "This is the Cheshire Cat, and he's just come from Wonderland which has been transformed drastically into a living nightmare. And this is also beginning to happen in other places like Neverland. Yen Sid and us mages were supposed to make sure such transformations never existed. Without Yen Sid, we're having trouble catching them before they take affect. And what's worse... those making sure these transformations remain in affect are in league with whoever is responsible for the kidnappings."

* * *

to be continued...

Thanks to GoblinQueeen, who provided the dialogue and some action for Helga.


	5. Chapter Five

Dark Storm Dawn

By Lord Akiyama

The follow-up to "Fantasia Crisis"

* * *

Chapter Five 

"Quite a cherry crowd we have here," Robin mocked as he looked upon his captors. "And I can only assume how much more intelligent than ol' Chernabog you are."

"You'll have to pardon our not silencing him," the hat wearing gunman said while giving the tied-up fox a glare. "The weapons that had the specialty bullets the madam created were disabled and someone wanted to make sure we got our proper pay by not killing him." He then turned his glare over to one of his fellow gunmen.

"And you should be so fortunate that he was kept alive, Rico," the figure standing before the oversized fireplace spoke. "You wouldn't dare want to feel the wrath of the Lord, would you?"

"We're beginnin' ta lose patience keepin' 'em alive, Frollo," a creature leaning against the doorway spoke in a deep, raspy voice. "Ya promised we'd spill their blood and I'm gettin' thirsty fer some."

"We won't have to wait long, Scroop," Frollo said, turning away from the fire. "We are moving along at a pace much faster than even I could have anticipated. And when the time comes, you may do what you wish to them and the Lord will forgive whatever sin you commit."

"You might want to repeat that to Hook should we ever make contact with him again," a raspy, old woman's voice spoke from a table behind Robin. "He's getting irked by those he was forced to align himself with."

"Neverland will be completely drained of its wicked 'magic' in due time, my dear," Frollo said, stepping slowly toward Robin. "The same with Wonderland. You just remind him that he is there for a purpose and not to remove himself from the mission at hand."

"Is that what all this is about?" Robin asked with a raised brow. "You're taking us down so that you could rid the world of 'wicked' magic?"

"You have no comprehension of the evil you present to this world," Frollo said, turning his gaze to Robin. "The very existence is a threat to the very heart and soul of those too ignorant to understand. And we are here to put an end to it permanently." He had stepped forward enough to reveal his face to the prisoner.

Robin almost gasped as he noticed the grinning figure's eyes. There was something about them that just didn't seem right. And the red glow they gave off. Moments later, he watched as Frollo turned away and walked back to the fireplace lightly laughing aloud. "Why do I feel there's something deeper to this?" Robin muttered quietly to himself.

"Put him to sleep before you check up on our old friend, Yzma," Frollo said as he returned to his previous spot before the fireplace. "You three, lock him up with the others. By now the others have gathered together and we will need to strategize their next move." He then paused for a moment and looked up to the ceiling. "Which reminds me. There's a piece of business I need to keep in check."

* * *

Every one glanced nervously once in a while over where Mickey, Simba and Amelia gathered to discuss what the next course of action would be. Jane flipped through her sketch book, noticing that she had illustrated everyone twice by now. She sighed as she turned to see the grinning figure of what Mickey called The Cheshire Cat taking a look at her drawings.

"My dear Alice has a gift for creativity," he said. "Perhaps you could teach her how to channel such imagination onto pencil and paper."

"Oh, drawing takes practice," Jane said with a nervous laugh. "I just... have a knack for it, I guess."

Mulan sighed as she outstretched her arms from her lying form before looking over at Helga and her family. "So," she began to say out of boredom. "You have any idea what we're going up against this time?"

"Mercenaries," Helga replied with a touch of bitterness in her voice. "Who ever is in charge doesn't have any real strength of their own, so they hired other people to do their dirty work." She paused as she looked at Chris and Alexandra. "Unfortunately, that's not good news because unlike your run of the mill take-over-the-world maniac, it means they are professionals and we've already seen they know how to get the job done."

"Doesn't mean they're perfect, though." They turned as Aladdin slid the cloth so hard upon his sword that it ripped right though. "Those three that attacked me kept bickering about each other's methods and they also mentioned something about some 'he' paying them to capture me alive."

"Mercs who've never worked with one another," Chris said. "Can't be good news for either side. Those kind of partnerships tend to end disastrously for them and any one else unfortunate enough to be around."

"It also means they don't necessarily trust each other," Helga nodded. "You make them think that one of them is trying to cut the others out of the deal and they'll take care of each other for us. Problem is, like the kid says, that doesn't get us to Mr. Big at the top of the food chain. He can just keep hiring more goons to come after us as long as his money holds."

"So who would be rich and powerful enough to support that in an effort to take us all down?" Mulan asked, pushing herself to a sitting position.

"I don't know every billionaire in the world," Helga shook her head, but then stopped suddenly. "On the other hand, I know someone who does. My old employer, Preston Whitmore has business dealings anywhere and everywhere. If there is someone with the business capital to run this show, chances are, he'd have heard of them."

"An option we'll have to explore when the time comes," Amelia said as she rejoined the others with Simba and Mickey. "Right now, we have concerns that need to be dealt with right away. This 'plague' the Cheshire Cat mentioned is something Mickey strongly feels we need to stop immediately."

"Fortunately there are only two places that require the most attention," Simba added. "We need to head over to Wonderland and Neverland and put a stop to whatever is happening to them."

"Wait a minute, when did I get roped into this save the world bit again?" Helga arched her eyebrow.

"You're not the only one," Hercules said with a reluctant sigh. "But how much better would it be if we just sat back and did nothing while you and the rest of us get hunted down by these mercenaries?"

"But that's the point," Helga shot the other a look. "Shouldn't we be focusing on that rather than some cat suffering from early hair loss?"

"If we don't stop these plague spots right now, we won't have enough power to keep this mystical plane active and we'll all be easy pickings," Mickey said. "Us mages have a lot of responsibility in keeping this world functional. And our powers is a gift generated from these worlds. Losing these lands means we lose our power. And losing our powers means we lose, period. If we ever hope to stop whatever it is that's attacking us, we need to make sure this plague does not continue to spread."

"Fine," Helga muttered, folding her arms over her chest, "but you're going to start getting a bill for these little clean up jobs."

"The urgency for stopping these plagues means we have to hit both locations at the same time," Simba said. "But we're not all going. We're splitting up in case anything should go wrong, should the group that leave end up getting capture." Simba took a sigh before he spoke what was needed to be said next. "Amelia is gonna stay behind on stand-by with Hercules, Aladdin and Mulan. Tarzan and the Spring Sprite will go with Tinkerbell to Neverland. Helga, I'm afraid you're going with me to help the Cheshire Cat's situation in Wonderland."

"Better than sitting around here," Helga shifted her weight as she brushed the bangs from her eyes. She turned her attention a little reluctantly to Chris and Alexandra. "I'm sure it won't take long," she said softly. "Promise me you'll take care of her?"

"Course I will, kido," Chris replied with a gentle smile. "You just make sure they get what they deserve."

"Actually, I was feeling pretty generous," Helga smirked. "I thought I'd give them a little something extra on the house."

"That's my girl," Chris chuckled before gently placing a kiss upon her lips.

"And don't you dare forget it," Helga replied slipping her arms carefully around him. "I promise we'll be back soon."

* * *

"Did you make all these things yourself?" Madellaine asked as she looked upon his wooden creations. Looking at ever different piece, she was completely mesmerized by the craftsmanship each one possessed.

"Most of them," he replied as he stayed close to one of the wooden supports near by. He watched as she examined his work with awe painted across her face.

"This is beautiful," she whispered as she gently placed a finger upon the colored glass that hung above his carvings, hearing them lightly clink as they gently touched one another. "If I could do this, you wouldn't find me showing off an elephant at the circus."

"You work at a circus?" Quasimodo asked with a light twinkle in his eye. He had heard of it before, but never actually seen it. "With an elephant?"

"Well," Madellaine started to reply with an embarrassed smile, turning to face him. "I really want to be an acrobat. But attending to the elephant was the only position they had left. It keeps bread on the table, so it's not too bad." She then turned her eyes to something on the table still covered by a cloth. "What's this?" she asked as she removed the cover.

"Oh, no please!" he stammered as he began to dash from the wooden support to the table. "I-I-I'm not finished. I still have to paint them." He wasn't even close when the cover was removed, revealing what was underneath. Madellaine leaned closer and looked with wonder.

"It's the blacksmith," she giggled lightly. "And the baker!" He gently picked up the wooden figurine and examined it carefully. She turned to Quasimodo who wore a mixture of dread and relief. Relief that she liked his work though worried that it might break before he could finish.

"You're a surprising person, Quasimodo," she said with a smile as she placed the piece back on the table. "Not to mention lucky. All this room to yourself."

"Well," he started with a nervous smile as he glanced away and rubbed the back of his neck. "It's not just me. There's the gargoyles and, of course, the bells. Wouldn't you like to see them?"

"Yes, of course," she replied with a nod.

"Follow me," he said as he climbed up the supports next to a pair of stairs. "I'll introduce you." He watched with a smile as she gleefully went along up the stairs. He continued onward while she stopped for a moment to look at each one.

"I never knew there were so many," Madellaine whispered.

"That's little Sophia," Quasimodo said, pointing to the bell she was looking at. He then leaped up to the supports above, touching each bell as he went along. "And Jeane-Marie, Anne-Marie, Louise-Marie. Triplets, you know."

Madellaine giggled before coming upon a particular bell. It was much larger than the others and hung alone at one end. "And who's this?" she asked as if she was being introduced to actual people with excitement.

"Big Marie," he smiled before landing next to the bell.

She giggled some more before ducking low and stepping into the bell. "Hello!" she called from within as her voice caused the bell to resonate.

"She likes you," Quasimodo said, causing them to lightly laugh together as she stepped out from underneath. "Would you like to see more?"

"I'd love to," she replied as she followed him to a ladder that lead outside through the roof.

"Good," he said happily. "I've saved the best for last!" He waved her on as he lead her to a particular spot on the roof. He hopped up and squatted upon the concrete railing and watched her. Madellaine looked out with pure awe as she watched the sun setting in the distance from her place. She had seen it many time before, but never like this from where she was standing.

"Oh!" she whispered, taking in the majestic beauty of the scene before her. She was standing upon the very top of Notre Dame itself, seeing the world in a whole new light. "I bet the king himself doesn't have a view like this." She sighed, leaning upon the railing next to him. "I could stay up here forever."

Upon hearing those words, Quasimodo turned to look at her. She was still enchanted by the beautiful view before her as he hopped over and hung onto the railing as though he was climbing it. "W-would you like to?" he asked.

She was quite taken aback by the question. They had barely met more than a few hours ago and here he was asking if she wanted to stay. To give up the dead end life of a circus girl with no chance at fulfilling her dream. Her eyes glanced about, wondering what answer she should say.

"It's quite an offer," she replied. "But I just got to know you."

"Oh, I'm sorry," he said with haste as he hopped his feet back onto the railing. "I didn't mean to ask that."

"Oh, no, no, that's alright," she replied with a light giggle. "I don't mean to hurt your feelings or anything. I'm sorry if I did." She stopped herself and took a deep breath. "It's just... it's too quite suddenly give up one life for another."

"I should be the one sorry for asking so quickly," he said.

"But I completely understand," she said. "I bet I'm the first person you ever met in a long time."

"Well, the first new person," he chuckled lightly. "This is a church and lots of the same people come to church all the time." The lightly laughed together before they faced one another in silence. The sun had completely disappeared in the distance and light was beginning to give way to night.

"Tell you what," she said. "We can still build this new friendship of ours. The circus is in town for a couple weeks. I can come by and visit here and you can come by and visit me at the circus."

Quasimodo lit up and was about to reply, when a sudden realization came over his face. His face saddened and he turned away. "I... I can't leave this place," he said. "My master forbids it."

"Your master?" she asked. "Why not?"

"He looks upon everything outside with great dislike and hatred," he replied. "I was only an infant when I was abandoned and he took me in to live here. 'To live in sanctuary from the evils of damnation,' he said."

Madellaine was about to respond with a argument to such a statement when she stopped herself. She thought about what she was originally going to say and realized he wasn't entirely true. "Not everything is like that," she finally said. "I'm sure he means well, but there are some things out there that are wonderful and magical."

"I want to believe that," he said. "I really do. But look at me. Would the rest of the world respond with the same kindness you have?" Before anything else could happen, Quasimodo heard a familiar muffled voice echoing out from inside the cathedral. "Oh no. He's here. Quick, you've got to hide."

"What?" she almost cried as she began to gently push her. "What do you mean? Why should I hide?"

"He hates the world outside, but he hates outsiders entering the cathedral even worse," he said as he pushed her a behind a large gargoyle statue. "And if he saw me with you, I wouldn't know what he would do. Please hide."

Reluctantly though quickly, she did as he asked and hid herself behind the gargoyle. She peeked as much as she could and watched as Quasimodo rushed his way toward the ladder only to be met by a dark figure appear before him.

"There you are, Quasimodo," the figure said with a deep voice. The tone caused goose bumps to rise upon her body. "I have been calling for you for quite a long time indeed."

"Oh, I-I'm sorry, master..." Quasimodo stuttered as he cowered before the figure. The sight of this began to frighten Madellaine as she watched. "I-I-I just wanted to w-watch the sunset..."

"I see," the figure said raising a brow in suspicion. Madellaine notice something strange about the way the figure's eyes started to glow in the night sky. "No matter. I have brought you dinner, though I will not be joining you this evening. I am needed at the Halls of Justice once more."

"Y-y-yes master..." Quasimodo replied.

"Remember your chores and have a pleasant night, Quasimodo," the figure said before turning and descending down the ladder. Madellaine let a moment pass before she stepped out from behind the gargoyle statue and walked slowly toward the shaking Quasimodo. She watched him in silence before placing a comforting hand upon his shoulder.

* * *

to be continued...

Thanks to GoblinQueeen, who provided the dialogue and some action for Helga.


	6. Chapter Six

Dark Storm Dawn

By Lord Akiyama

The follow-up to "Fantasia Crisis"

* * *

Chapter Six 

When Robin opened his eyes, he noticed one of the three gunmen approaching Beast with a gun in hand. "It would be so simple," the gunmen said as he placed the end of the muzzle upon the side of Beast's face. "Just pull the trigger and it would be all over. And Belle would be mine."

"And you punks say I'm the loose cannon," Rico scoffed, spitting tobacco onto the containment bed that held Stitch. The alien growled as the chewed substance barely missed him. "For a hunter, you sure know how ta let a creature get under yer skin oh so easily Gaston."

"At least I only want to kill just one," Gaston said as he glared at the other. "You and that... thing, Scroop, on the other hand, would just love to kill every last one of them."

"When yer a bounty hunter, you know how to keep your cool and retain patience from having to kill yer target," Rico said as he continued to chew the tobacco that remained in his mouth. "You get paid more fer keeping them alive."

"If that is how to view a 'bounty hunter,' how do you view a regular 'hunter,' like Gaston?" Beast asked with a raised brow. He then grinned as he turned his eyes to see Gaston shutter to retain his temper and keep from pulling the trigger.

"Regular ol' hunters?" Rico laughed. "Pathetic gunslingers who wouldn't know how ta properly fire a gun when the pressure gets ta them. I often wonder why I'm stuck partnering up with these sissies." Quite quickly, Gaston pointed his gun at the chuckling Rico, his only reaction at Gaston's sudden move.

"Why don't we test that theory, shall we Rico?" Gaston asked with anger seething through his teeth. "Your hands are far from your weapons and it only takes me a tenth of a second to pull the trigger. Just how fast do you think you can even touch your guns?" He got his answer when he was suddenly staring at the ends of two pistols aimed for his forehead. He heard the clicks of Rico's thumbs pulling back the hammers to both weapons.

"The real question is whether or not I can pull the trigger faster than you," Rico said, his grin growing wider. "We both know I'm the better gun when compared to the three of us. Don't you agree, Clayton?"

"I'm not sure whether I'm looking at a bunch of foolish children at play or two men about to fire upon one another," Clayton sighed from the doorway as he entered. "You both know I hate being the peacekeeper of the group. Hell, I hate being the peacekeeper over anything. Put those damn things away and let's get moving. Yzma said some of the twelve are on the move and we're demanded to be on stand-by."

"Suits me fine," Rico said as he pulled back his weapons and then slowly placed them in the holsters. "Watch duty is the dumps. Especially when there's only one lil' lady in the room. It's too bad she already went through labor." He chuckled again and once more spit tobacco at Stitch's constraint before exiting the room. On his way out, he tipped his hat to the scared Ariel with a snide smile upon his face.

"No money in the world is worth this," Gaston sighed before turning back to Beast. "I will deal with you later. I can promise you that, Beast." He then turned and walked out of the room with the other three gunmen. Moments later, the four prisoners were all alone.

"Why is this happening?" Ariel asked. "Why is this happening to us?"

"I wish I knew the answer, Ariel," Robin sighed. "I really do. But something tells me there's more than meets the eye as to what's happening here."

"Are you sure this has nothing to do with Chernabog?" Beast asked as he tried to muscle his way out of his restraints. "I mean, who else would be able to know about Yen Sid and all of us?"

"I'm definitely sure Chernabog has no involvement in this," Robin said. "As to who else, I wouldn't have a clue. Let's just pray the others figure something out and fast. If you ask me, I think we're dealing with something more sinister than Chernabog. And that by itself is a scary thought."

* * *

Simba and Helga looked about as they materialized within an environment they were not expecting. Echoing throughout where mechanisms turning and clicking, the air cold the steel that surrounded them as dark and gloomy as the sounds that were made.

"Okay Helga," Simba said after a deep breath. "Am I correct in understanding you have some familiarity with this story Wonderland is supposed to be based from?"

"I thought I did," Helga murmured as she cast a suspicious eye around, "but this is nothing like Lewis Carroll wrote about."

Quite suddenly, a object zipped past between them at full speed with a slicing noise emerging from behind. They turned to see what looked like a humanoid of a ten of spades cut in half and dead on the floor.

"Whatever you thought it was is now forgotten." They turned back to see a figure leaning against the wall in the shadows. "Wonderland is no longer the jolly, yet crazy setting it was when I first arrived." The figure stepped out. Her dark brown hair fell straight of her pale white skin. "If it was once a dream, it is now a nightmare."

Just then, the Cheshire Cat materialized upon the girl's shoulder. "My poor, dear Alice," he said. "She has suffered much since her parents perished in the fire. Enough to drive her mad with insanity."

"She's not the only insane one around here," Helga whispered to Simba.

"But that was always the point, wasn't it," Alice said, taking a few steps forward. "I was a sane person who arrived in an insane world from her mind. Imagine what would result of that world if she herself were to go insane." More of herself revealed, including the dry splatter of blood upon the white over her skirt.

"Umm, Simba..." Helga looked at the girl warily "I think we might want to get moving..."

"Pardon her appearance," the Cheshire Cat said as he disappeared and appeared right before them. "My dear Alice's journey has been fraught with peril left and right."

"Remember the creature whose appearance resulted in my coming here the first time?" Alice asked.

"The white rabbit?" Helga asked carefully, still keeping her hand within easy reach of her gun.

"Dead," Alice replied, turning slowly away from them. "Squashed when we shrunk in size in the hopes of passing into the Queen's demented stronghold undetected. Killed by the abomination who rules over this asylum with an iron fist. Literally."

"The Mad Hatter," the Cheshire Cat said.

"And I thought this story was bizarre to begin with," Helga muttered. "Alright, so we go find this Mad Hatter and straighten him out."

"More and more obsessed with time he has become," the Cheshire Cat said. "Utterly and willingly, serving the Queen with unimaginable might."

"He plans on converting all of Wonderland's inhabitants into automatons," Alice said, glancing over her shoulder for a moment. "He had help. But Tweedledee and Tweedledum are no longer of concern."

"I know I'm going to regret asking this," Helga said as she massaged her temple lightly, "but why not?"

"Because if I didn't kill them, Wonderland would've been doomed," Alice replied, though she didn't sound happy about what she had done. "And that is what we're gonna have to do when we catch up to the Mad Hatter, I'm afraid. There's no turning back for him. He's willingly gone too far and he has to be stopped."

Helga looked at Simba knowing if either of them had a moral objection to this, it was going to be him.

Simba looked back at Helga and sighed. "This is..." he tried to say, but he couldn't find the right words to finish. He then looked over to one side and saw something that would haunt him. "That is what this... Mad Hatter has done?" Behind a window he saw a rabbit and a mouse chained to the walls. Much of their body converted into machinery. Everlasting sadness painted their faces, never to be healed.

Alice glanced over to what Simba saw and nodded. "March Hare and Doormouse," she said. "They used to be alive with life. Now they practically beg for death."

"Whatever happened here, it needs to be stopped," Helga replied as she studied Simba's reaction. "I think we need to establish first for sure what that was and then decide how we're going to deal with it."

"The Queen, the Queen," the Cheshire Cat said with rage seething from his teeth, his words grabbing their attention. "My lower incisors for the Queen. Off with her head and the plague will end. Her wretched heart poisons this land."

"But to get to the Queen, we need the Gryphon," Alice added. "He's the only one left who can get us safely into her demonic domain."

"Seems she hasn't come very far from that little tournament she had you fighting in," Helga nodded to Simba. "Alright, so where do we find this Gryphon?"

"Trapped, yet untouched by the Hatter's madness," the Cheshire Cat said.

"He's a level below us," Alice said, beginning to step toward a doorway. "He hasn't been altered, yet we're running out of time before the Hatter decides to change that. But the only way to release the Gryphon is get past the Mad Hatter."

"I don't like where this is going," Helga sighed, "I still feel like we're being kept in the dark, but I guess we don't have too much of a choice."

Simba sighed. "Well," he began to say. "I think we can say that the closer we get to solving this mystery of ours, the darker our journey is going to get. If this is happening here, imagine what Neverland is like."

"I don't know," Helga smirked, "maybe that obnoxious little kid in the tights finally got what was coming to him."

* * *

There was something definitely wrong about the situation, Tarzan knew that much. Clearly these were animals he and the Sprite found themselves suddenly fighting. What he didn't understand was that they were not entirely animals. It was as though they were part animal and part human. Almost like him, just more on the animal side than on the human side.

He slid from the ground up along the bark of a tree before leaping off to pass over the swinging claws of the creature. He landed on his feet and stayed in a crouching position as he swung his spear at the legs of his foes. He then pulled the spear back into a holding position as he blocked an incoming swipe from another creature. Tarzan clenched his teeth hard as he wrestled for strength against the opponent and succeeded in pushing it back.

The Spring Sprite waved her hand to create a barrier shield as each swipe was made toward her. She moved quickly as she kept the creatures in one sustained spot before conjuring a net to trap them temporarily. It was the most she could do without actually causing serious harm and that was something she would never resort to. She did this as much as she could to keep Tarzan from getting outnumbered.

Tinkerbell flew about to keep herself from getting swiped while trying to find the time to conjure something to help Tarzan and the Sprite. It was apparent that Tarzan didn't need flight as he used his surroundings quite resourcefully while the Sprite already had the ability. Tinkerbell knew a few other tricks, but it took time and patience and she was getting neither while creatures were attempting to kill her.

The pressure of the fight began to take its toll on the trio when a strong whistling noise was made. The creatures came to a sudden stop and looked in the direction of the sound. The three stopped themselves, unaware of what was going on. The whistle became louder and stronger with the creatures becoming angrier and angrier as they began to back away from the three and the sound of the whistle.

It was then that a figure leaped before the three, facing the creatures and whistled even more. The creatures screamed violently at the figure, yet continued to back away. Moments later, the creatures ran off and disappeared in the distance. The figure continued to sound a whistle for a little while longer before quietly bringing it to an end. The three were still unsure of what to make of the figure before them to notice a second figure appearing to their side.

"Oh my God!" the second figure gasped. The three turned to see a female with long, ragged brunette hair and what appeared to be a dampened blue dress covering her mouth with her hands. And rather delight surprise painted across her face. "Peter, it's Tinkerbell!"

The first figure looked from his right side to look and smiled. "Tink!" he cried. Tinkerbell turned upon hearing his voice and smiled with joy. She began zooming toward him with excitement. Then, he turned and it caused her to completely stop in place with utter horror.

There stood Peter Pan, years older than Tinkerbell last remembered. His shirt was gone and was striped down to torn pants that was more or less hung together by a piece of cloth tied at the waist. He was very dirty, though his rather improved muscular frame was more than noticeable. But not as noticeable as the shoulder length ragged hair... and the cloth that covered his left eye. With a stain of blood.

Tinkerbell was unsure what to do as she froze in place, her wings hovering to keep her in flight though it was probably out of instinct. It didn't take Peter long to register how she was exactly feeling when his eye looked away from a moment before looking upon the other two. "I'm glad you brought help, Tink," he said, his eye turning back to the pixie. "We need it very badly."

"I'm Wendy," the girl said to the others with a small smile on her face. "Wendy Darling. I'm Peter's companion." As the others shook her hand, they noticed from the corner of their eye that Tinkerbell was not quite happy to see Wendy as she was of Peter when she heard his name. It appeared that she too had aged since the pixie last saw her.

"I'm The Spring Sprite," the spirit said as she shook Wendy's hand with a smile. "This is Tarzan. And yes, Tinkerbell has brought us here. We understand a 'plague' has overrun Neverland."

"You can say something like that," Peter said as he approached the others. "I would've normally helped you fight those creatures, but under the circumstances it was better to just scare them away. Those used to be my pals, The Lost Boys. Apparently, something happened that caused them to transform into something like the animals they wore the skins of. They keep their distance from the Indians, but I dunno know how long that will last."

"And we can't kill them because two of them are my brothers," Wendy said as sorrow overcame her. "I simply cannot bare losing both of them because of something twisted that happened."

"There's more, but I think its better that we escape back to our hideout," Peter said as he grabbed Wendy gently by the arm and began to fly off. "They're not the only ones about who are dangerous to fight."

The others quickly followed with Tarzan surfing through the trees, the Sprite flying over the treetops and Tinkerbell trying to be as close to Peter as possible. "You missing eye?" Tarzan called as he leaped from one branch to the next.

"Long story," Peter sighed. "But that's exactly the case. It relates to this new threat about. Even though they've transformed into vicious creatures, the boys remember where the hideout is and jump it whenever they feel bodies are about, so we've relocated to the side of the mountain.

Moments later, Peter pointed out the spot on the side of the mountain. Tarzan slid upward and grabbed The Sprite's extended arm and she carried him over to the hideout. They all entered and touched down, finding it having been tossed around. The three new arrivals stared with disbelief while Peter groaned and covered his face with one hand.

"I knew I shouldn't have left him alone," he muttered. Before the others could ask what he was talking about, they got their answer from a voice further within.

"I thought you said you HAD rum!" a male voice cried.

"I said I didn't KNOW if I had rum, you moron!" Peter yelled back. They watched as an unusually clothed figure staggered from out of a room and stumble on the floor before them. Peter shook his head as the figure pushed himself back up to his feet and walked oddly toward them.

"Ah, I see we have ourselves guests," the figure said with a smile. It sounded like his words seemed to slur together unusually whenever he spoke. The three didn't know what to make of the figure appearing before them. Tarzan and The Sprite looked at one another in confusion before turning back to him.

"Guys, I want to... reluctantly... introduce you to..." Peter started to say before the figure interrupted by speaking and grabbing the Sprite's hand for a shake.

"Sparrow!" the figure said. "CAPTAIN... Jack Sparrow!"

* * *

to be continued...

Thanks to GoblinQueeen, who provided the dialogue and some action for Helga.


	7. Chapter Seven

Dark Storm Dawn

By Lord Akiyama

The follow-up to "Fantasia Crisis"

* * *

**Author's Note and Warning: From this point on, the story is really going to dig deeper into the dark side. So much so that it is very much at the edge of what is acceptable in a PG-13 tale. These includes strong violent content, remarks toward sexual situations and more. If you are uncomfortable with such implications, especially in relation to Disney characters, it would be best that you discontinue reading this story right now. Otherwise, you have been warned.**

**And one more thing, something I forgot to make mention a couple chapters ago. The characterizations and descriptions of Alice, The Cheshire Cat and any characters and locations of Wonderland is based on that of the computer game American McGee's Alice. Though the original characters and locations are copyright Lewis Carroll, the story used and the details described of the characterizations and locations are copyright Electronic Arts. They are in no way being used for profit, but rather for fun. So please don't sue.**

**Thank you.**

* * *

Chapter Seven 

"There's should be something we can do aside from waiting on stand-by," Mulan sighed. "It's completely boring just being here and not doing a single thing."

"I sympathize, Mulan," Amelia sighed, retaining her composure. "But we are waiting patiently here in case anything goes wrong in either Neverland or Wonderland."

"Yet we can still do something without having all of us disappear," Hercules said. "We can pay my uncle a much needed a long awaited visit and see what he can tell us."

"Isn't this uncle of yours the same guy who always wants something in return without a downside?" Aladdin asked as he continued to wipe his blade with a cloth. "Remember the last time we needed to deal with him for something?"

"Which is why I'll personally make sure he gets nothing in return," Hercules replied and he slammed his fist into his palm. "I can promise you that."

Amelia thought about this and sighed. "Alright, look," she said. "Hercules, you and one other can pay a quick visit to your uncle. And not the emphasis on quick, my friend. We cannot afford to lose any one else. The faster you can get in and out with whatever information he has the better."

"Works for me," Hercules said with a smile as he shot up to his feet and stretched his arms. "Hey Mulan, ever wanted to see what the Underworld looks like?"

"I bet going there is better than staying here another minute without a single thing to do," Mulan shrugged as she stood up from her sitting position on the ground. "Anything I need to know before we arrive."

"Yeah," Hercules said as the two made their way over to the mages. "Be prepared to fight a giant, three-headed guard dog who hasn't had his walk in a couple millennia."

* * *

"You're certainly one lucky lad, lemme tell you," Jack said was his eyes wondered in the direction of the hovering Tinkerbell. "Not everyone has their own pixie, you know." 

Tinkerbell turned to look at the speaker and then noticed that from where he was looking he could see up her dress. Her face flustered with embarrassing shock for only a quick second before anger overcame her. She flew down and smacked him hard on the nose. Jack was taken aback and wiggled his nose after being his as she flew off with disgust.

"Not sure if I deserved that..." he muttered, feeling his nose with a free hand and as confused as he could appear to be.

"So I flew over and confronted Captain Hook about what was happening," Peter said as he continued telling the story to the others, clearly ignoring whatever mischief Jack was engaged in. "But it was then that he wasn't alone. There with him was another pirate captain. Really ugly beard he had, lemme tell you. We argued and then we fought with our swords, noticing that his skills were far more superior than Hook's.

"After playing with him for a bit, I finally decided to stab him. It was then I noticed that it had little effect on him. So I stabbed him again. Still no effect. When the moonlight shined upon him, it revealed to me why my sword wasn't doing anything. The guy was already dead. He chuckled a bit before knocking me down to the ground. He muttered something about me having some sort of treasure piece he was looking for and demanded that I hand it over. I told him I didn't know what he was talking about, but he wouldn't have any of it.

"When he lost patience, which happened very quickly, he said it was time he taught me a lesson. He took the tip of his sword, stuck it into my left eye and pulled it straight out. No cuts, he pulled it out. Hook's splendid laughter over the whole ordeal was overshadowed by my scream, I can assure you. I was unsure about my chances of fighting with one eye, so I bolted as quickly as I could. I can honestly tell you that that was one of the few times I was ever afraid."

The Sprite covered her mouth with one hand in complete shock while Tarzan was at a lost for words. Tinkerbell had a hard time keeping herself afloat as she stared in horror was where Peter's left eye used to be. Wendy sat behind him with her arms wrapped around his waist. Jack, on the other hand, was looking around hopelessly for rum. But though he didn't appear to have paid attention, he heard every word.

"There aren't many pirate captains who were dead and proudly displays the ugliest beard you'd ever seen this side of the Caribbean, mate," he slurred as he picked up a shirt, examined its appearance, and tossed it as he resumed his search. "But I do know of one. And I'd luv nothin' less than to stick me pistol down his throat and pull the trigger. That, me mates, is Barbossa. Lead the rest of the mates to mutiny against me humble skin."

"Gee, I wonder why..." Peter mumbled as he rolled his eyes.

"I heard that!" Jack yelled, rocked about in place as he glared at Peter for a moment, and then returned to his search. "Now then, where was I? Ah yes, Barbossa. I actually should thank the heartless bastard. Seeing as after they marooned me on what I thought was an isolated island they dipped their greedy lil' paws into Cortez' treasure and proved tha curse true. Sure they're walking undead, but every pirate can't go about wit out three things: thirst, hunger and a Bonnie-lass' warmth. Same 'olds for Barbossa and his mates."

"Did you understand a single word he said?" The Sprite asked Tarzan curiously. The other replied in shaking his head.

"Civilized folk, I see," Jack murmured, rolling his eyes as he went about his search. "Although they don't look it."

"The best we figured from his... words... is that Hook aligned himself with a bunch pirates that were greedier than Jack," Peter said after giving the other a nasty glance. "That greed cursed them and they have since been trying to relocate the treasure. Apparently, when what Tink called the worlds coming together took place, the treasure switched locations as well. In addition, this Barbossa fellow claims there's one other person who took a piece of the treasure. And in order to lift the curse, they need the blood of all who laid their hands on it."

"I think I understand," Tarzan said, thinking about what was said. "This 'plague' we need to stop in Neverland caused by cursed pirates. Stop them and Neverland cured." He looked to the Sprite, who thought about the idea and nodded in agreement.

"I take it that be the civilized translation of me words," Jack said before throwing down a shirt with frustration and groaned. "But most importantly... where the bloody hell is the rum!"

Wendy moaned in anger as she stood up and marched over to Jack. "For the last time, Captain," she said. "We. Have. No. Rum!" She then quickly raised her right hand and slammed him hard across the face.

Jack spun back in reaction to the slap and then pointed his finger as though he was talking to someone in front of him. "I may have deserved that..." he muttered.

"Good luck trying to stop this... 'plague' Hook and his friends are causing," Peter sighed. "In order to stop them, we need to lift that curse of theirs. Meaning we not only have to find the treasure, but we also have to find out who this other person with a piece of the gold is."

Jack then raised his eyes for a moment, thought about the first thing that came to his mind, and then turned to the others. "I may be able to help you with the first part," he slurred. "If you do something in return for me."

"Oh, for crying out loud, Jack," Wendy sighed with increased frustration. "We've been telling you again and again. Barbossa did not bring your 'precious ship' with him to this island. We don't know where the Black Pearl is."

"Then I guess you won't be able ta find the treasure," Jack smiled. He then saw something on Wendy that caught his eye and kept his gaze upon it.

"And how would you know where to find it?" Peter asked curiously, though doubtfully.

"Because I've been there," Jack grinned, still looking at the object that grabbed his attention. "When this... thing-a-ma-jig... took place, I found meself crawling into some miserable cavern where I found the treasure. No easy access in or out, mind you."

"Wait a minute, you've seen the treasure?" Peter said, raising a brow in suspicion. "So you're the one who took a piece of the treasure. Meaning you're cursed as well."

"Well..." Jack started to say, swinging his arms about in an attempt to shrug. "True, I did take a piece of the treasure. But I wasn't the only one." He then began to walk slowly toward Wendy. "Apparently, someone... unwittingly... took a piece as well. And are completely unaware of what they bare." As he got within just inches of Wendy, she noticed he had been staring at her. She raised her arm in anger and was about to slap him when he quickly grasped her wrist. "Shhh..." he whispered. He then moved his free hand and touched the lace around her neck.

"Take your filthy hands off her!" Peter cried in rage, pushing himself off the ground and charged at the pirate.

"Relax, mate," Jack grinned when he snatched the lace and pulled it off from Wendy's neck. "I just solved the second piece of the puzzle." Peter came to a sudden halt. He stared in disbelief and horror at what was dangling from Jack's hand. "It seems your lovely Bonnie-lass is that unwitting soul baring a piece of the treasure." Hanging from the lace was a gold coin of Aztec origin.

Everyone looked at the piece of gold that dangled from Jack's hand, completely dumbfounded and rather frightened. Wendy had a piece of the gold. Meaning she herself was cursed. Silence continued for another moment before Peter swallowed and started to speak. "When?" he quietly asked her.

Wendy, already beyond horrified that she was a walking undead, retraced the events in her mind. It was then her cheeks began to blush. "A little after we..." she began to say before sheepishly turning away. "After we... well..."

Jack darted his eyes between the two and then grinned in realization. He gently released his grasp on Wendy's wrist and chuckled. "You dawg!" he called as he began to dance about.

"What?" Peter said in confusion. Seconds later, he watched as Tinkerbell began to flutter in front of him completely outraged. He was in the dark as to what exactly Jack was dancing about and why Tinkerbell was angry at him. He looked at Wendy, whose blushing intensified, and then realized why. He was about to verbally react when Jack wrapped an arm around his waist.

"Welcome to manhood, me boy," Jack gleefully said. "Now if we had rum, we'd celebrate properly."

"Manhood?" Peter said in shock as he began to form a blush of his own. "But... but this is Neverland. You're not supposed to grow up in Neverland!"

"Trust me, me boy," Jack chuckled some more. "I don't care where this is. Once ya felt the warmth of a fine Bonnie-lass, there ain't no going back. Besides, now that you're a man you can do the things you were probably taught never to do as a boy. Like drinking rum. Which is what we should've been doing by now."

The Sprite looked at Tarzan curiously to understand what was going on. Tarzan curled his lips and grunted a bit. "It's..." he quietly said before coughing. "Um... ask another time." He coughed again, only to grab the attention of the others. "So we have pieces to puzzle. How do we stop 'plague' now?"

After having danced around with an embarrassed Peter Pan for a bit, Jack stopped in place, place a finger on his chin, and thought about the question asked. "Well, we have the advantage," Jack began to say. He then snapped his fingers and widened his grin. "I may have an idea. But you have to do exactly as I say and I want yer word that I get me ship back. Savvy?"

* * *

"Time for tea, little Alice," The Mad Hatter laughed with a rather sinister grin as he sipped his tea under his long and oversized nose. "And you've brought friends on such an eventful Unbirthday!" Alice had stern determination painted upon her as she looked up at the towering figure leaning on his cane. "Questionable friends, if I may say so." 

"That's the Mad Hatter?" Simba asked in utter shock, looking up at the figure who appeared to be as tall the sky. That was not including the oversized top hat he wore.

"Remind me to thank the mouse for getting us into this," Helga grumbled.

"Ah, just as the Queen informed," the Hatter said with a chuckle. "Foes who threaten the plans would find their way into our land. For a moment there... I thought she was... dare I say... mad!" He laughed harder as he stood tall and twirled his cane.

"You've truly gone beyond the deep end," Alice said. "But you will not inflict your madness upon others any more! I promise you that!"

The Hatter slowly ceased his laughing, though his sneer remained. "Then let us dance our final dance, little Alice," he said. The top of his hat began to open with four rockets emerging from within. "For it shall be a very Happy Unbirthday indeed." The rockets fired rapidly and one at the time, heading straight for them.

"Move!" Helga exclaimed as she jumped out of the way. They all jumped in various directions to avoid the four in-coming rockets. The explosions were not large, but they would've surely caused enough damage nonetheless. "I don't think I'd even be able to give him an itch with this thing," Helga said putting her gun back in its holster. "We're going to need a new plan and fast."

Alice didn't hear as she rolled to a kneeling position and flung a pair of jacks at the villain's legs. Upon impact, the explosion rocked the giant and caused him to groan while he traied to get his footing straight. In anger, he spilt a splash of his tea in their direction. When they moved, Simba realized in shock as he watched the liquid splash upon the ground. The tea was toxic.

"It's almost impossible for me attack him at a close range with that stuff in his hands," Simba said to Helga.

"So who says I'm opposed to attacking from a distance?" Helga threw back. "We just need to figure out what his weakness is. What if we got him to spill that stuff on himself?"

"He just drank that stuff a moment ago," Simba said. "Would that harm him at all?"

"Who knows," Helga shook her head, "but my guess is he wouldn't have drank it unless it was safe, or unless he didn't know, but I've never known myself to be that lucky."

"Logic knows little relevance here," a familiar voice said. Seconds later, the Cheshire Cat materialized before them. "The balance of might results from the imagination of Alice. Keep her from tipping too close to the edge of madness and the plague shall be defeated. Oh... and in-coming." With that, he disappeared once again.

"In-coming wha.." Helga started before looking back around. The head of the Hatter's cane was swinging toward them. Simba barely made it in time to leap himself and Helga out of the way without connecting. "Thanks for the warning," Helga shouted sarcastically at the balding cat. "Where's Alice?"

Simba nodded in the direction of Alice baring a wand in her hand. A beam of ice shot out from the head, connecting strong against the chest of the screaming Mad Hatter. The Hatter staggered back when the beam ceased to fire, his breathing becoming heavier with exhaustion.

"Well since she seems to be the one with the firepower," Helga said as she rubbed her neck, "what do you say we focus on keeping her from her killed?"

"Guess we don't have much of a choice," Simba said. He watched as the Hatter swung his cane in any direction out of frustration. "You know, maybe if you fired your gun a couple times it might give her an opening."

"It would be like me hearing the sound of an ant, but it's worth a shot...literally," Helga said pulling the gun out again and moving as far away from the girl as she could before firing.

The Hatter groaned upon feeling bullet connect against him. He turned slowly to see his shooter and moved even slower to slam his cain upon her. So slow he moved that it was more than enough time for Helga to dodge the attack and continue to fire. Alice saw her chance to strike.

She pulled out a butcher's knife and threw it. With great speed, the knife pierced through the back of the Hatter's neck and punched out through the front. The Hatter uttered a noise before freezing in horror. Electrical currents began to give off around his head as he dropped to his knees and shook violently.

"Holy..." Helga muttered under her breath at a loss for words.

The Hatter's head began to jerk from one end to another as it seemed he was trying to sing. "Uh... very... Happy... Un... birth... day..." Seconds later, his head exploded. They looked and noticed that his entire body, much like his asylum, was mechanical. The body slowly fell forward and crashed. The Mad Hatter was no more.

"I know one book I'm never going to read to Alexandra," Helga said to herself as the dust cleared. "Alright, now where is that Gryphon that's supposedly so important?"

"I take it patience was never your strongest suite, my friend," said a proud voice from behind. They turned to see a large creature stand before them. The body of a lion, the head and wings of an Eagle. "I am The Gryphon you seek," he said as he bowed.

"Never put it on my résumé," Helga shrugged.

"Quite a creature you are," Simba said in awe.

"And one who I am glad is alive and well," Alice breathed with relief. "Gryphon, we need your help more than ever. We have to reach the Queen. Can you take us beyond her domain?"

"As far as my wings will take me, Alice," Gryphon nodded. "There is plenty of room for the three of you. Four if that scoundrel of a cat continues to appear and disappear like he always does. Climb aboard and I shall take you the source of our misery."

"Well, with an invitation like that..." Helga muttered.

"Come on, Helga," Simba tried to chuckle as he hopped onto the Gryphon's back after Alice. "The sooner we get through this, the better."

"Yeah, the more alive the better, too," Helga said as she followed suit.

* * *

to be continued... 

Thanks to GoblinQueeen, who provided the dialogue and some action for Helga.


	8. Chapter Eight

Dark Storm Dawn

By Lord Akiyama

The follow-up to "Fantasia Crisis"

* * *

Chapter Eight 

"I only agreed to this so-called 'partnership' because I was assured that blast brat Peter Pan would be dead," Hook yelled as he pounded his fist against the table in anger. "You assured me you could kill him without hesitation."

"That's only if he wasn't tha one who took a piece of tha blasted treasure, Mr. Hook," Barbossa sneered while looking through the window. The moonlight shined to reveal his decomposed form. "Not ta mention you assured me you would find said treasure in no time."

"You can blame that Greek devil for such misfortune, Mr. Barbossa," Hook snorted. "If it wasn't for his personal well being, this so-called treasure of yours would've have merged with Neverland. And I wouldn't have to put up with you and your stupid wanna-be pirates!"

Barbossa turned and glared at the other pirate captain. "Testing either me patience or me temper is one t'in, Mr. Hook," he snarled. "Testing both is never a good idea. We both know I have no problem killing you at this very moment. And we both know that ya can't kill me while me and me lads are still cursed."

"Consider yourself lucky to be cursed, Mr. Barbossa," Hook spitted. "Cause were that not tha case, we both know I'm a better swordsman than you. And I wouldn't even break a sweat making you bleed."

"You see, it's arguments like these is why I never acknowledged you as me right hand, Barbossa." The undead pirate widened his eyes upon recognition of the voice. He turned and was completely bewildered by the sight of that stupid grin belonging to one Captain Jack Sparrow.

"No," Barbossa muttered as he stepped forward for a closer look. He walked out of the moonlight, revealing him in his mortal form as he stared with disbelief at the sight of the man before him. "It's not possible."

"Not PROBABLE, mate," Jack slurred, pointing his finger at the other pirate as though he was pointing out a correction.

"Who the bloody hell is this?" Hook asked with a raised brow.

"This be the bumpkin me lads formed a mutiny against so we could get our hands on that treasure, Mr. Hook," Barbossa said, changing his expression from shocked to frustrated anger. "We left him to rot on a remote island, I made sure of it."

"Of course, you always forgot about one thing, mate," Jack said, widening his grin. "I'm Captain Jack Sparrow."

"Of course you are," Barbossa sneered. "Which is why I'm making sure yer dead once and for all."

"Don't you wanna know how I got past yer mates without them noticing?" Jack asked.

"I'll figure that out after I cut yer throat," Barbossa replied as he pulled out his sword.

"Then I guess yer not that interested in finding the treasure," Jack shrugged. Barbossa stopped himself as the blade was within inches of Jack's neck. He thought for a moment before rolling his eyes and groaned.

"You know where the treasure is," Barbossa said with displeased realization.

"Of course I do, mate," Jack said as he staggered his way past the other toward the table. "Because when this mambo jumbo thingy happened, I noticed that the island you left me on became the island the treasure is hidden on." He examined a bowl of fruit for a moment before picking up an apple and began munching.

"I'm a pirate and not a single word of that made any sense," Hook muttered. "And get your filthy hands away from my food." He rammed his hook down against the side of the table in front of the other pirate.

Jack looked down and examined with a raised brow. "That's interesting..." he murmured.

"There's more ta this than yer letting on, Jack," Barbossa said as he stepped over and narrowed his eyes. "Because I wouldn't give up such information to a man capable of killing me without something in return. Aside from postponing a death that has been far delayed from my liking, what exactly do you want?"

"Simple," Jack said as he took another bite of his apple. "I want me ship."

"The Black Pearl has been retained by our employers, Jack," Barbossa said as he rolled his eyes, disgusted at what Jack wanted in return for information. "It'll be mighty hard to convince them that my mortal enemy wants it back simply because he told me the whereabouts of the treasure."

"And why should we trust you in the first place?" Hook asked, twirling his mustache with his hook in suspicion.

"You shouldn't," Jack shrugged. "You should never trust a pirate. Even if yer a pirate yerself. Because pirates aren't to be trusted. Trust me."

"What yer point, Jack?" Barbossa groaned as he rolled his eyes.

"My point is this," Jack said with a wicked looking smile on his face. "You see... not only did I manage to find yer precious treasure, Barbossa... I just so happened to also find the... what was it? Something like... 'that blasted brat'... yeah, that's it. I also happened to find that blasted brat trying ta return a piece of tha treasure he took."

"So Peter Pan DID have a piece of that treasure..." Hook muttered in a cursing tone.

"Oh, so that's his name," Jack said. "Any way, I caught the brat, kicked him where the sun didn't shine, tied 'im up and left 'im as a lil' thank you present fer giving me back me ship."

Barbossa took in every word and thought about it. "In exchange fer the immediate return of tha Black Pearl," he said. "You show us tha treasure and tha blasted brat, thus releasing me and me mates from our curse. How do I know yer not pulling me beard, Jack?"

"I wouldn't touch yer beard with a ten foot poll, mate," Jack said. "So yer just gonna hafta trust me." He out stretched his hand to Barbossa for a shake, who along with Hook each raised a brow. "Savvy?"

* * *

"Just take a deep breath, Madellaine," the ring master said. "It's the first time in seventh months you ever showed up late for rehearsals. You're not going to lose your job."

"I know, sir," Madellaine nodded. "It's just that... well..."

The ring master took a deep breath and smiled as he placed a hand upon her shoulder. "I know its tough going from town to town doing the same lowly job for seven months. I did the same when I first started out. It took me years before I got to the opportunity to do what I've always wanted. Tame lions. And when the time came, I gladly became the ring master. But stick to it, kid. You'll be an acrobat someday."

Madellaine gave a gentle smile as her eyes met his. "Relax and be yourself," he continued. "You're on in five minutes. Because Dumbo isn't the only star of the show." She giggled as she watched him wink and made his way into the performance tent. He entered and the roar of the crowd was sounded.

She took a moment to take a deep breath and began to collect her thoughts. She paced a bit, remembered the order of what tricks to do before she was content that she was ready. She was about to head over to where Dumbo waited when she noticed something in the shadows. With a raised brow, she looked around and decided to investigate for a quick second. She then saw a rather familiar figure. "Quasi?" she gasped.

A cloaked Quasimodo began to stubble a bit, almost knocking over whatever was within his reached. Madellaine quickly grabbed one of his arms to keep him from falling onto the tent. "Oh, I-I-I'm sorry..." he stuttered.

Madellaine giggled. "It's alright," she whispered. "I'm glad you came."

He smiled after calming down. "I took a chance," he said quietly. "Because I wanted to see you perform."

The smile on her face slowly began to widen. "Thank you," she whispered.

"Your welcome," he replied. They heard another roar coming from the crowd. "You better get going. You wouldn't want to leave the audience waiting."

She giggled again. "Of course not," she said before turning and running off toward her performance partner. "Enjoy the show!" she added with a wave before disappearing from view.

He waved back, retaining his smile. He sighed before turning toward the opening to watch the show.

* * *

"There lies the Queen's Castle," the Gryphon called as he swooped downward for the others to take a closer look. It looked less like a castle and more like a fortress surrounded by flowing lava. "It is here that the heart of Wonderland's plague resides."

"What was the Queen supposed to be like?" Simba asked. "I was too busy handling Hercules to ever figure out who she was."

"Hey, you guys had me dealing with a big elephant, remember?" Helga shot back. "In the book, she's a satire on over wielded authority. Brutal, but not very effective in the end. That, and she likes to cut off heads."

"You can change that effectiveness part now," Gryphon replied. "She has since be very effective in making sure that everything runs her way and nothing else. Resistance has been reduced to a few. That and this outside source is feeding her with additional power to overcome all odds."

"What kind of outside source?" Alice asked.

"I'm not sure," Gryphon replied. "But Cheshire felt it was something that required the attention of the mages. And since you two are here, it seems he was right."

"Let's hope he was," Helga muttered. "I'll be really annoyed if we came all this way for nothing... even more so if we came all this way just to lose our heads."

"One other thing," Gryphon noted. "She's now doing more than just cutting off heads, now. You saw how her influence led to Hatter constructing Wonderland's inhabitants into machines of terror. As Alice can tell you, the Queen is making sure every little thing is to her liking and desire."

Just then, the Cheshire Cat briefly appeared upon Gryphon's head. "The Queen's Champion is about," he said quickly. "Be on your guard." And just as quickly as he appeared, he disappeared.

"Great," Gryphon groaned. "I'd hope we didn't have to encounter him. That the route I was taking was out of his line of sight."

"Just who or what is this 'champion'?" Helga asked with an inward grimace.

"The one creature you never ever want to meet," Gryphon said. "If he wasn't employed under the Queen's power, he would've destroyed Wonderland in an instant. I actually consider it luck that Alice didn't encounter him during any of her visits. And from what I understand from this book you refer to, he's smart enough to keep himself from being revealed."

Just then, an object at high speed smashed the Gryphon on the side. Unable to control the speed of his decent, he crashed into the ground and forced the others of his back before sliding over a small hill. Just as the three were starting to recover their senses, a large wall of flame began to circle them.

"Just what the hell is going on here?" Helga shouted as she tried to pull herself up, her gun already out.

Just then, a beam shot out and pierced right through Alice's body without causing any damage. Alice's scream was one of horrific terror before the beam ended and she dropped to her knees. She breathed heavily as the pain surged through her.

Simba and Helga looked up and saw a pair of eyes, the same color of the beam, staring at them. And then came a voice, as if it was reading from a passage in a book.

_"Beware the Jabberwock, my son!  
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!  
Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun  
The frumious Bandersnatch!"_

The figure stepped closer and soon revealed himself. The mechanical appearance looked more organic than any of the Hatter's inventions. Standing triple their size, he resembled that of a dragon standing on its back to legs. And smoke continued to rise from his mouth.

"Welcome back, Alice," he sneered.

Alice gasped in horror before slowly looking up, her skin turning pale white. "The Jabberwock," she whispered.

"I don't suppose you're hiding a big sword in that mane of yours?" Helga whispered to Simba.

"I wish," Simba whispered back.

"SILENCE BOTH OF YOU!" The Jabberwock screamed. Short beams shot of his eyes knocking Simba and then Helga to the ground. The pain surging through Simba caused him to scream unlike any he had ever roared.

Helga let out a muffled cry. She was out of practice and out of shape after just having had a child and for once in her life, she didn't know if she was going to be able make it through a fight. But there, blazing through the pain was her promise to Chris and to Alexandra. She had to make it through this for them.

"Be fortunate the Queen demands your lives be spared," The Jabberwock said. "Her outside investors require the lives of the twelve and the mages for our glory to be completed. So just lay still and relax while I destroy Alice from the inside out."

"I will fight you, Jabberwock!" Alice cried, looking up at the creature with determination. "You may have great power, but I will kill you."

"Kill me you say," Jabberwock said as he slowly began to pace before the kneeling Alice. "You want to kill me... like you killed your own parents?"

"No!" Alice cried with a quiet tone. "We were asleep! We were all asleep! Neither of us could've known the fire was burning until it was too late!"

"Of course you were asleep," the Jabberwock sneered. "You were too busy having tea with your friends, living life in your imagination. While your parents suffered." Alice began to whimper, tears running down her pale face as she struggled to maintain her strength.

Simba was barely able to open his eyes when he noticed the surroundings began to slowly transform. The flames began to burn hotter and more intense. The ground turned darker and less forgiving to the touch. Simba then remembered something the Cheshire Cat said.

"He's driving her mad," Simba whispered to Helga.

"We...we have to distract him or frustrate him to the point he'll forget to fight smart and just lash out," Helga said quietly as she tried to regain her focus. "Let's just hope he remembers he doesn't want to kill us," she muttered.

"That's enough!" she shouted. "It wasn't your fault, he's just manipulating you to get what he wants. As for me," she added with a turn to the Jabberwock, "I have an active imagination, too. I'm imagining your head mounted nicely on my wall."

"No manners whatsoever," Jabberwock said as he sneered at Helga. Just then, two spawns of himself burst through the ground. "Subdue them, but remember NOT to kill them." The Jabberspawns then slowly began to make their approach at Helga and Simba.

"You have any bullets left in that gun?" Simba asked.

"Yes, but I don't know if they're going to do any good against those things," Helga grimaced firing off a few quick rounds, and then, all of a sudden, it clicked. "He's her conscience," she whispered slowly. "This whole place is kept in balance by her mind, right? So that enormous ugly thing is just an extension of her guilt. If she can let go of that, then she can beat him."

The Jabberspawns were effected by the gunfire, but continued to step forward. They then quite suddenly leaped at great distance to drive the both of them down to the ground. Simba grunted as he struggled to get the creature off of him. He then resorted back to using his hind legs to push the creature off and into the flames. The Jabberspawn staggered back to its feet and out of the fire, still determined to go through with its master's demands.

"Face it Alice," The Jabberwock said, leaning closer toward the sobbing teen. "You will never find solace. You will never escape your troubles. You will never escape what you have denied. It is your fault they are dead. It is your fault that Wonderland is in ruins. You are to blame, Alice! YOU KILLED THEM!"

Just as Alice screamed with tears, an object smashes into the Jabberwock. As he was slammed against the ground, one of his eyes is forced out. Seconds later, he was dragged into the air and engaged in a battle with The Gryphon.

"You've got to talk to her, Simba!" Helga shouted as she leveraged her boot into the belly of the creature standing over her, flipping him over. "You helped me let go of my guilt, maybe you can help her," she added as she fired point blank at the creature's skull.

"I'll try!" Simba cried as he knocked the Jabberspawn he fought back into the fire. He then rushed over to the sobbing Alice as she covered her eyes, burying herself into her guilt. "Alice, listen to me. It's not your fault. None of this. I may no nothing about this fire that killed your parents, but I've been through something similar myself.

"I thought I killed my father when I was very young. I thought it was my fault that I caused the events that ended his life. And I believed it so that I ran away. But I know now that I was not to blame. That I was not responsible and it was not my fault. What I also know is that the guilt carried heavily into my heart. It consumed my every action and my understanding of all around me. Don't let that happen to you."

Just then, Simba was slam tackled by the Jabberspawn as they resumed their fight. Alice stopped sobbing, taking in what Simba had just told her. She remained in place as the memories of that tragic event replayed through her mind, everything else that surrounded her was shut out.

She remembered coughing as she woke suddenly in the middle of the night. Smoke was emerging from underneath her door. She walked carefully as she dared to look for the origin. She looked down the hallway as saw light underneath her parents' door. She called to them and they responded, telling her that she was more important. To leave the house. To save herself. She called again, and they responded. They told her that it is their responsibility to see to it that she is safe from harm. And if that meant they had to die in a fire they could not escape, so be it. They would die knowing that their daughter was safe.

Alice slowly opened her green eyes. She looked about as she saw Simba and Helga struggle with the Jabberspawns. She then spotted something on the ground before her. An eye of the Jabberwock. She picked it up just as something slammed to the ground. She glanced over to see a barely breathing Gryphon fighting with no strength against the overpowering Jabberwock.

One last tear rolled down her cheek before she pulled out a staff. She connected the eye into the head of the staff and it began to charge. She got to her feet and pointed the staff at the Jabberspawn fighting Simba. It fired and the beam began to incinerate the creature. She turned to the Jabberspawn fighting Helga and then she began to incinerate that. Then she turned to The Jabberwock, who became aware of Alice's actions. He leaped toward her, but nothing he could do afterward could protect him from the beam. He screamed as he was driven down to the ground. Alice stopped the beam before it completely incinerated the creature.

Helga wiped a small trail of blood from her cheek as she caught her breath. "Thanks," she said softly.

"No problem," Alice quietly replied. She then walked over to the dying Jabberwock, his breathing still struggled to stay alive. "I'm not afraid of you."

"It matters not..." the creature muttered. "Even if... you were to... somehow defeat her majesty... and restore Wonderland... all will eventually be lost... to the Guild..." The Jabberwock then began to laugh, no longer interested in speaking. After this had gone on for too long, Alice fired one last beam in the creature's body and incinerated him forever.

"Guild?" Helga repeated as she walked over to where the creature had once been. "Any idea who that is?" she asked Alice.

"Wouldn't have a clue," she replied softly, her attention to the dying Gryphon before her. She walked slowly up to the creature and kneeled next to him. "I'm sorry..."

"Don't be..." Gryphon gasped. "Alice... don't give in... to the madness... don't ever give up..." Moments later, the Gryphon exhaled his last breath and was gone. Alice closed her eyes and took a deep breath. With a tear rolling down her cheek she stood up and opened her eyes once again.

Helga stood silent for a moment before putting her hand on the girl's shoulder. "He did what he felt was right. I know that doesn't make it any easier, but we have to keep moving so that he didn't die in vane."

"I know," Alice replied. "It's the only way to put an end to this madness, after all. I believe it's time to be off with her head instead."

"For you are now fortified to kick some ass, my dear Alice," the familiar voice, and grin, of the Cheshire Cat said as he appeared before them. "The wicked, vile creature resides in her throne comfortably. But tread carefully, for she is by no means weak."

"Any other little friends or pets we should be keeping an eye out for?" Helga said, arching a distrustful eyebrow.

"The Queen's Champion was all the remained of the forces that kept my dear Alice away from driving that butcher's knife into her majesty's neck," Cheshire replied. "But even by herself, the Queen will indeed put up a fight for your life. Thanks to her outside friends."

"Do you know anything about this Guild the Jabberwock mentioned?" Simba asked.

"Only that it is the Queen's outside source of power and nothing more," Cheshire said. "Whoever they are, they feed her with everything that is needed to turn Wonderland into the kingdom of her vision."

"But she didn't look like the type that could put up a fight," Helga argued. "Just what are they giving her and why?"

"We'll just have to ask her ourselves," Alice said, determination and anger seething from the tone of her voice.

* * *

to be continued...

Thanks to GoblinQueeen, who provided the dialogue and some action for Helga.


	9. Chapter Nine

Dark Storm Dawn

By Lord Akiyama

The follow-up to "Fantasia Crisis"

* * *

Chapter Nine 

"I must say, Captain Hook," Jack slurred as he squeezed the water out of the cloth hanging from his clothes. "In all my years of piracy, I had never had tha pleasure of meeting a pirate who was perhaps the single worst swimmer this side of the Caribbean. It's ever a wonder yer a Captain at all, mate."

"You can blame that blasted Peter Pan fer it," Hook sneered, squeezing the water out of his hair with his only hand. "As you can see, this hook is a result of his cutting me hand off and feeding it to the crocodile."

"I bet he woulda made a fine pirate," Jack pointed out.

"Doubtful," Barbossa said, not caring about the water that covered him from head to toe. "The boy is not'in more than that, Jack. He runs about under tha misguided fantasy of being a child all thru eternity."

"Even when he grows older?" Jack asked.

"It's because of that he'd make a terrible pirate," Barbossa spitted. "No comprehension of true value."

"I wouldn't know about that, mate," Jack said. "Tha went red wit blush while I was tying him up and mentioned somet'in about the pleasures of woman warmth."

"Did he?" Barbossa smirked. "Guess he's not a boy after all."

"Apparently the boy is growing up," Hook laughed. "Perhaps I should press him for details before we spill his blood. Speaking of which, where is the blasted brat?"

"Just down 'ere, me mates," Jack slurred as he staggered down a pathway. "Strange set up, really. Having ta swim underneath the rocks ta find yer bloody treasure and all, Barbossa."

"Stranger things have happened when the world merging took place," Hook sneered as they followed. "Although I must say that I am not the least bit surprised your two islands merged with Neverland."

Before any further remark could be made, the three entered a huge room. Gaps and holes upon the ceilings revealed moonlight the shined upon piles of gold and treasure resting upon the walls. And in the middle with a large moonlight on top was a particular treasure chest. Filled with Aztec gold.

Hook's smile widened as he saw seated before the moonlight tied up in knots was Peter Pan. "I must say, Jack Sparrow," Hook began to say as he danced toward the constrained prisoner. "You are quite tha pirate captain."

"And one wit many surprises up his sleeve," Barbossa remarked. "I thought I had ya figured. Turns out yer a hard man ta read." He chuckled as he began to make his way toward the treasure.

"Well, well, Peter Pan," Hook chuckled as he came within inches of the prisoner. "In due time, I shall finally be able to extract my ravenous revenge upon you."

"What, you can't do it now?" Peter mocked. "You can't strike me down with you 'ravenous revenge' so you can finally be at peace with killing the boy who haunted your waking dreams moment by moment?"

"I would if I could," Hook said as he leaned in close so Peter could see the sneer. "If you hadn't laid yer hands on that bloody treasure, I'd be slitting yer throat right about now."

They stared at one another for a moment before Peter formed a grin on his face. "Who said I was cursed?" Peter said. Quite suddenly, his right fist came across hard against Hook's face. Hook staggered and groaned in reaction before turning to see the supposedly tied rope fall loosely off of Peter's body. The pirate barely got his sword unsheathed and in defense stance when the flying boy charged with his own sword in hand.

Barbossa turned upon hearing the sound of clashing swords. Seconds later, a sword was sticking through his chest. He looked down and stared at it for a moment before rolling his eyes and pulled it out from the back. He held the hilt of the sword and turned to face his attacker, Jack Sparrow. Who bore his sword under the moonlight in decomposition.

"I couldn't resist mate..." Jack grinned. Barbossa snorted before the two engaged in their own sword fight.

Tarzan took a chance and peeked over the rocks upon the ceiling of the room. He crept slowly through the shadows as he watched the two sword fights take place. Peter mixing basic sword fighting with his flying abilities to dodge all of Hook's attacks, who was using both his sword and his hook. Jack and Barbossa sword fighting just for the hell of it as they danced through the moonlight as a reminder of the curse they carry. Tarzan continued to sneak through, keeping an eye on the scared, decomposed form of Wendy crouched behind the chest and awaiting to do her part.

The fight raged on before Peter decided to make his move. He swung his sword down upon the defensive hold of both sword and hook before hovering over the pirate and landing behind him. He ducked Hook's sword swing and rammed his free arm hard against Hook's to keep him spinning as seconds later, he drove his sword into the pirate's back, through the heart, and out his chest.

Hook dropped to his knees and looked down at the blood soaked blade sticking out of his chest. He then tried to laugh. "And to think..." he managed to mutter. "All this time... I thought it would be... the crocodile... who'd get me." He slowly turned his head to face Peter in the eye. "Heh... blast you... Peter... Pan..." His eyes rolled upward and he fell forward upon the ground. Captain Hook was dead.

Jack and Barbossa continued to fight, paying no heed to what had happened. Moments later, a knife appeared in Barbossa's right shoulder. The pirate groaned, not watching as Jack stepped out of the moonlight, cut his hand while holding the coin so that it would be soaked in blood, and tossed it toward Tarzan as he dropped before the chest. Barbossa looked up at his foe and was hit with a left fist, causing him to stagger back. Seconds later, watched as Jack pointed a gun at his heart and fired.

"Ten years you carried that pistol and now you waste yer shot?" Barbossa scoffed.

"He didn't waste it," an unfamiliar male voice said.

Barbossa turned toward the chest. He saw three figures standing behind it. Peter Pan stood in the moonlight, his body not in a state of decay. He saw a barely clothed man holding a blood soaked Aztec coin. And a woman, whose decomposed state slowly began to revert back to normal under the moonlight, holding another blood soaked Aztec coin. A small cut on the palm of her hand. The coins were dropped into the chest with the rest of the coins.

Barbossa turned back to Jack, who was now standing under the moonlight and still holding the smoking pistol in hand. He then looked down and watched blood began to form and soak his shirt. He looked back up at his murderer and tried to smirk before falling backward. Captain Barbossa was dead.

There was nothing but silence for a moment before Wendy ran up to Peter and wrapped her arms tight around his waist. They embraced in relief as the curse that was upon her was lifted. Tarzan sighed before turning to Jack, whose eyes remained upon the corpse of Barbossa. "Let's check on Sprite," he said.

* * *

"They're called Pain and Panic for a reason," Hercules said. "But I've never seen Hades this unstable before."

"Do you think it was a good idea to come now?" Mulan asked with a raised brow. "Perhaps we should return later."

"I'm not willing to spend another minute waiting," Hercules replied. "I want answers and I'm sure he's got them." Mulan shrugged as she followed the other further into Hades' domain. The two imps screamed as they ran about trying unsuccessfully to avoid whatever fireballs came at their way. It was then that the Lord of the Underworld noticed his nephew and groaned.

"No, no, NO!" Hades yelled, the fire on his head turning red with frustrated anger. "Herc, babe, this is not the best time in the world to pick a fight with me, alright? It's that time of the century and your father, being the brilliant God that he is, didn't see fit to advise me that there was going to be an increase in traffic of departing souls because one of his bolts accidentally fried an entire wedding party!"

"You seem to find enough time to scorch your two servants," Hercules noted.

"I always have time to scorch them," his uncle replied. "That's the point of them serving me. But that's not the point, alright? So please do yourself a favor and leave me alone! Being tortured horrendously by one being is enough. Add two more, and you're pushing for me to create a whole new volcano in the middle of Greece."

"What is he talking about?" Mulan asked curiously.

"I wouldn't have a clue," Hercules replied.

"You shouldn't keep the soul bunched up together," an unfamiliar female voice spoke. "It makes them feel uncomfortable." Hercules and Mulan looked around until they noticed someone kneeling by the river Styx with a black umbrella in hand. This person had short black hair, pale white skin, a silver ankh that hung around her neck and a very cheery smile upon her face. Hades began to burst fire out of his head from frustration. Hercules and Mulan was more confused than ever before.

"I can't be taking care of the well being of the dead every single second," Hades said. "Otherwise, I can't get all my other responsibilities done! And I have plans for next April! I may be a God, but I'm not an Endless like you! I can only do so much with so little!"

"Okay, I'm so lost here," Mulan said.

"That's okay," the girl said as she turned her smiling attention to the other two. "It's not anything important for you to know. I'm just making sure Hades is doing his job alright."

"And you are?" Hercules asked.

"You don't remember me, do you Hercules?" the girl said as she stood up and twirled her umbrella. "At the very second you laid your hand on Megara's, thus saving her life and completing your journey to become a God. I was right there watching you." Hercules raised a brow in confusion and shook his head. The girl giggled. "Well, you can't always be expected to remember seeing me when you haven't died. Not unless you're one of the lucky few to meet me during any of my centennial breaks from the job. Any way, my name is Death."

Mulan and Hercules spent a moment's silence looking at her with utter bewilderment. They then glanced at each other before looking back at the smiling girl. "You're Death?" Mulan said.

"What, were you expecting a bony dude with a cool black cloak and a blade the size of the Moon?" Hades mocked. "Yes, she's Death. And believe me, her ideologies and philosophies about how life is grand and all that jazz will make you wish it was some skeleton guy who sounds like Christopher Lee as Death rather than her."

"Christopher who?" Hercules asked in confusion.

"He exits long after you were born, Hercules," Death giggled. "If we had time, I would have told you more about him. But I believe you two are hear to ask your uncle for something."

Hades' eyes shot wide open the second he heard those words. "Oh no," he said. "No! Don't even think about it, Herc. I've already got enough problems dealing with her! I don't need the added pressure of having to give you information!"

"Why not?" Death asked. "Because you cannot think of anything you want in return at the present moment in time and wished they had waited like Mulan suggested so that you could have cooked up something?"

Hades' jaw dropped to the floor upon hearing Death recite every word he was thinking in his head. He sighed and rolled his eyes, really wishing his dear caring brother didn't give him this gig in the first place. "Have I mentioned how much I really hate you sometimes?" he said.

"You've thought about it more times than you care to mention," Death said happily.

"Good," Hades muttered before turning his attention to Hercules and Mulan. "Fine, I'll give you a freebie and let you in on a little something." He then glanced back at Death. "Happy?"

"Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!" Death replied with an even bigger smile.

* * *

"John! Michael! Oh thank goodness, you're alright," Wendy cried.

Moments ago, The Spring Sprite had brought the transformed Lost Boys aboard the ship and released them on the unsuspecting pirates. After the creatures had ripped apart the undead victims and sent them on their way off the ship. Some jumped off onto land where as the others ended up floating to the bottom of the waters below. She made sure to keep an eye on them until there was any sort of sign that their mission was a success.

The Sprite watched with as smile as Wendy embraced her two younger brothers, who were slowly regaining consciousness after their sudden transformation from murderous beasts back to normal human children. She turned to watch Peter explain to his groggy Lost Boys about his missing eye while Tarzan curiously watched Jack examine the barrels, unsuccessful in his search for rum.

Moments later, Peter felt content about telling his boys as much as he could and walked over to Jack. "Well, I guess this is thanks for all your help," he said. "So how soon do you plan to set sail."

"Set sail?" Jack glared, looking up from the empty barrel. "Lad... the agreement was that I helped you in return fer getting back me ship. And if I'm not mistaken... this is NOT the Black Pearl."

"Can't you just take this one?" Peter asked with a raised brow. "You are a pirate, after all."

"I may be a pirate, mate," Jack said with a slur. "But even I know that you don't steal another pirate's ship. I don't care if poor Barbossa is dead, even if you are a pirate it's bad luck stealing another pirate's ship." Quite suddenly, the helm of the ship exploded. "See?" Realization finally came over him and he turned to the burning remains of the helm.

Tarzan was the only one who heard creaking wood and turned to see an all too familiar figure loading his gun. "Clayton!" Tarzan cried.

"Blast!" Clayton cursed before quickly pointing his rifle and firing. Tarzan dodged out of the way just in time and leaped forward and connected both feet against the hunter's chest.

A second gun fire was heard and the Sprite dropped to her knees screaming. Her left shoulder began to react violently as she looked on in horror. She looked over her shoulder to see a hat wearing gunman reload and prepare to fire again. Quite suddenly with no control, her body began to exert a blaze of energy. Everyone who was about were instantly knocked to the ground, though Clayton found himself being knocked into the waters below. The hat wearing gunman rolled to one side and fired at the Sprite's back, instantly knocking her to the ground unconscious.

Tarzan slowly shook off the effects when he watched the gunman make a run for the Sprite, grab her, and leap off to the other side of the ship. He quickly leaped to his feet and followed, looking up to see another ship beginning to depart.

"That's my bloody ship!" Jack yelled in recognition. He pulled out a dagger and threw it at the sight of the first body on board. The blade pierce through the gunman's hat and slammed again a door.

The gunman looked over at his hat and snorted. "Toss it, Gaston," he called over to a third gunman who appeared on deck.

"What about Clayton?" Gaston asked as he lit the fuse connected to a pair of dynamite.

"Forget Clayton, just toss the damn thing," the other said. "You know the boss wanted us to bring her back immediately the second we took her down, regardless of whether or not we had any of the others."

Gaston made no further reply as he tossed the dynamite onto the opposing ship. Tarzan immediately spotted this and quickly made a dash toward the others. "Go, now!" he cried. The others didn't bother to argue as they ran with him toward the end of the ship nearest to land.

Tinkerbell immediately dropped pixie dust upon the Lost Boys and zoomed off while Peter grabbed Wendy and her brothers and leaped into flight. Tarzan and Jack, on the other hand, took the hard approached and leaped off the ship and onto the hand land below. Tarzan landed on his feet, Jack landed on his back. Tarzan quickly picked up the immobile Jack and made a dash as far as he could from the ship before it began to explode.

Clayton dove under to avoid getting hit by any of the incoming debris. He watched from below the water's surface as fire and smoke began to appear. He was about to make his swim toward land when he heard something strange. Tick, tock, tick, tock. It sounded like a ticking clock. But underwater? He turned in the direction of the sound and widened his eyes in horror. A huge crocodile with a hungry grin swam toward him at full speed. Clayton turned and tried to swim as fast as he could, but it was too late. He barely let out a scream when the jaws slammed upon him.

* * *

Alice cut down the last of the guards, throwing a playing card to behead him. The three then found themselves within walking distance of the heart-shaped door that no doubt lead to the throne of The Queen of Hearts. Alice took a deep breath before unsheathing her butcher's knife.

"Shall we knock?" Helga smirked as she leveled her gun in front of her.

"Took the words right out of my mouth," Alice grinned in return.

Suddenly, the doors opened and in a flash tentacles shot out. Two grabbed hold of Simba and pulled him just as he roared in sudden reaction. A third wrapped around Helga's arms and upper body before pulling her in. And a forth seemed to have grabbed empty air until it forced the Cheshire Cat to reveal himself, growling as it tightened around his neck and pulled him in. Alice brought her blade up in defense only to watch one of the doors slam.

The three did all they could to muscle out of their containments, but the tentacles only tightened with each struggle. They soon found themselves being held before the Queen herself. She was very much different than even Cheshire remembered. A sense of haunting beauty painted her slim frame and pale red skin. There were no irises upon her glowing red eyes, yet her luscious red lips curled in a smirk.

Helga growled as she fought to free her arm at least, but the thing was holding on too tight. She fired a couple shots hoping she didn't knick herself with a bullet in the process.

"Waste your pathetic bullets all you want," the Queen laughed. Her voice just as different as her appearance. "It will do no such harm to me. Only weapons of a specific make can so much as scratch me now. And even then, I shall not be destroyed."

"Yeah, heard that one before," Helga sneered as she tried to kick the thing with her boot. "No one is as invincible as they think they are."

"True as those words may be, it will not help you in relinquishing my claim upon this land," the Queen said. Moments later, a clear orb appeared near Helga and Simba. The tentacles released them into the orb before it began to travel to the Queen's side. "Your capture is now complete. And when I have dealt with Alice, the Guild will receive you handsomely in return for my complete dominance of Wonderland."

"No!" Helga shouted as she threw herself against the outer edge of the sphere, but it was like a solid wall. Determination still written across her features, she lashed out at it with punches and kicks.

Simba was about to do the same, though his attention was caught upon the fact that the Cheshire Cat was still alive. "You've struck down any soul that tried to rise up against you," he said. "Why haven't you killed him?"

"Believe me, I want nothing more than to be off with his head," the Queen laughed. "But then through hidden observation something interesting. Though quite hidden on the outside, he shares a... special bond... with Alice." As the words were spoken, it caused Cheshire to lash out as best as he could. The Queen laughed harder at the sight.

Then came the slam of a door. Everyone turned their attention and watched as Alice slowly stepped into the throne room, butcher's knife in hand and determination painted across her face. "Hello, Queen," she said. "My name is Alice. You killed my friends. Prepare to die."

"Uh oh, I don't think she looks too happy there," Helga lowered her eyelids gently in the Queen's direction, a touch of a grin on her lips. "I'd say you might want to make your apologies now and get out of this gracefully while you still can."

"Is that so?" the Queen scoffed. "My, you certainly have changed since our last meeting Alice. You've gone from an annoying teenage girl to murderous young lady in a single swoop. And it is all because of a little fire that resulted in the deaths of your precious family."

Alice took a deep breath and exhaled, keeping her emotions in check as she started hard into the eyes of the Queen. "My name is Alice," she repeated, her tone slightly altered to a more aggressive manner. "You killed my friends. Prepare to die."

"Stand back," Helga muttered to Simba. "This might backfire on us," she added as she took aim at the invisible wall.

"I think its better if we just put our trust in Alice to get us out of this," Simba said as he crouched down.

"You expect me to just stand here and do nothing?" Helga looked at him incredulously.

"Wonderland will no longer be the imagination of a girl who cannot accept the harsh reality she is supposed to live in," the Queen said, her voice altering as well. Sounding as though there were three other voices speaking in unison with her. "With your death, I shall free this land of suffering from your mind. For you see, this land sits upon the edge of destruction because of your mental state. In essence, it is your fault that Wonderland is what you see."

Alice closed her eyes, taking an even deeper breath and exhaling longer. "My name is Alice," she repeated, the tone becoming more aggressive than ever. "You killed my friends. Prepare to die."

Helga pounded her fist again in frustration against the wall. "There has to be something we can do," she muttered more to herself than anyone else.

"Just have faith in her, Helga," Simba said, watching the events unfolding before them. "That's all we can do now."

The thought of Alexandra crying and waiting for her to come back flashed through Helga's mind as she let her fist fall quietly one last time. "You had better be right," she whispered.

"Strong will in such a woman," the Queen laughed, continuing to talk down upon Alice. "My, you really have changed. Accepting the obvious flirtations of a cat, willingly risking your life and sanity for the sake of beings who are nothing more than the figment of your imagination. And even able to retain sanity and a sense of hope after losing your parents from a fire burning with purpose."

Alice stopped shaking and slowly opened her eyes in realization. "Yes," the Queen continued. "It is time you knew the truth. For you see, that fire was no accident. To fulfill the needs of the Guild, we drove you mad. Mad with guilt, mad with lack of reason, mad with no hope. And yet you strive. But it no longer matters. It is you who will parish. And it will be I who rule over Wonderland." The Queen began to laugh and then her face began to roll back as though it were a mechanical device. In place was a complete duplicate of Alice's face. Laughing at Alice herself.

Alice took one glance at the struggling Cheshire Cat before looking back at the Queen. "My name is Alice," she said in a whisper. "You killed my family." The tip of the butcher's knife began to shine as she reared it back. "Prepare to die, you bitch!" With all her strength, she threw the knife and watched it rip through her duplicated face.

The Queen screamed with rage as she rolled out another face. This one was more demonic. Her form began to change as well as she began to grow and the tentacles increased in number. The room itself disappeared and placed everyone within dark purple mist that flashed green lightning. Alice rolled and began to run along one of the giant tentacles while trying to dodge everything the Queen threw at her.

Alice whipped out her Jabberwock Eye Staff and began to fire the beam at the Queen. A sound was made, though it appeared it wasn't quite the normal sound for moaning of pain. Then again, Queen wasn't exactly normal any more. Alice continued to fire the beam at the Queen, though it was beginning to take longer to killer her than it did for the Jabberwock.

A tentacle swiped at Alice. She ducked just in time, but could do nothing as it successfully knocked the staff out of her hands. She rolled forward and looked up to see Cheshire struggling right above her. She looked carefully at his face. His eyes moved in a particular direction, as if telling her where to go. She turned and noticed something at the far end of the tentacle. A weapon that looked like a musket.

With all her strength and speed, Alice charged toward the weapon while trying successfully to avoid getting hit. She was connected many times on the back, but she pressed on. She rolled once more and grabbed the weapon and pointed it directly at the Queen's chest. She fired. The projectile was very strange. Alice determined that it was whatever the eye of the watcher wanted it to look. For her, it was the souls of all who suffered the Queen's wrath. And they struck hard against her black heart.

The Queen screamed as her body began to explode. The tentacles wailed in pain before dissolving into nothingness. The Cheshire Cat disappeared as he was dropping and then reappeared by Alice's side. The sphere that imprisoned Helga and Simba began to fade. The Queen's scream raged on as she began to shrink down to normal size before collapsing upon the ground. Moments later, they were all standing in the middle of blackness.

Alice walked up to the dying Queen, whose appearance began to morph into a decaying state. Alice removed another butcher's knife from underneath her skirt. The Queen looked up, her eyes beginning to fade into nothingness. Alice showed no signs of regret or remorse as she raised the blade high into the air and stuck down across the demon's neck. The head rolled for a moment before coming to a stop. Seconds later, the body melted into green grass that began to spread. And slowly but surely, sanity and order was beginning to be restored in Wonderland.

"Looks like you didn't really need our help after all," Helga mussed, digging her heel into the grass just in case that woman could still feel anything. "Unfortunately, we still don't know anymore about this 'Guild' everyone is talking about."

"No, you were quite helpful," Alice said with a small smile. "You two kept me sane when I stood upon the edge of madness. Especially you, lion. Your words helped me overcome my guilt."

"Always glad to help," Simba said.

"As for knowing any more about this Guild," Alice said as she walked over and picked up the Queen's head. "We can always dig out whatever information she had."

"You've got to be joking," Helga sneered.

"Allow me, my dear Alice," Cheshire said before disappearing. Moments later, the eyes of the Queen shot wide open. Only the eyeballs were actually Cheshire's. And soon the luscious red lips became his all too recognizable grin. "How do I look?" he said, retaining his voice as his eyes turned to the others.

"Ok, this is too eerie even for me," Helga muttered taking a step back.

"You can say that again," Simba said, swallowing hard.

"You're too kind," Cheshire said. "Here's what I've recovered." He rolled his eyes and soon his voice began to change to go along with those who actually spoke.

"I have devised chemicals that will perform the deed of driving Alice insane," an elder woman's voice sounded. "Just as I have devised the chemicals you shall use to take over this land. One of our hired hands will make sure the unfortunate young lady suffers greatly."

"What assurances do I have that this is not a ploy, Yzma?" the Queen's voice asked.

"Your assurances will be met in due time, Queen of Hearts," the woman called Yzma replied. "For now, be content with what we have supplied for you. If you shall excuse me, I must put the finishing touches to the weapons that will take down the master of masters. The kind only the dead would know about, that I am sure of."

The eyes rolled once more before closing and the grin disappeared into the luscious red lips. Moments later, the Cheshire Cat reappeared before them. "That is all I could recover," he said.

"Weapons only the dead would know about?" Helga looked a Simba questioningly.

"Beats me," Simba said after thinking about it. "Guess maybe we'll have to ask Hercules' cousin after all."

"Right, because he's so cooperative," Helga rolled her eyes.

"Whatever you plan to do, I'm coming along," Alice said. "This 'Guild' is responsible for the murder of my parents and for the madness that consumed Wonderland. I wish to repay them in spades."

Helga shot Simba a brief look. Her first instinct was to not put anymore people than they had to in danger, but then, she also knew if she were in Alice's place, that danger meant very little. "Do you think it's safe?" she asked. "After all, if you're the only one holding this place together, what happens to it if you come with us?"

"Wonderland exists through my dear Alice's imagination," the Cheshire Cat says. "But it does not always have to function from her mind."

"It's not like I have to be here at all times, any way," Alice smirked with a hint of laughter. "Besides, I think everyone here has had enough of my mind influencing things for a while. They'll be okay"

Simba sighed and thought about it for a moment before looking to Helga. "Well," he began to say. "I say we can accept whatever help we can get."

"I don't suppose it would hurt to have insurance in case they take down the rest of us, either," Helga added grimly. "If you're really that determined to be put through a hundred more fights like that one, then I won't say no, but it's a risk you'll have to decide for yourself you want to take."

"I'm just getting warmed up," Alice grinned. "So what do we do now?" Just then, a very familiar voice to Simba and Helga began to sound.

_"Asante sahna squash banana webe wu a webe wu..."_

"Oh, not the monkey," Helga muttered as she let her head fall into her hand.

"Would you have wanted the wizard instead?" Simba chuckled before turning to the mage. "Alice is gonna be joining us, Rafiki. As you can see, we've cleared up the plague here in Wonderland."

"Curing land of disease always a good thing," Rafiki said with a nod. "Accepting help from others even better. Return swiftly we must as the mystery continues to be revealed, yet a high price we have paid." Moments later, they all vanished from Wonderland.

Even the Cheshire Cat.

* * *

to be continued...

Thanks to GoblinQueeen, who provided the dialogue and some action for Helga.

Author's Note: The happy-go-lucky goth chick whose favorite movie is "Mary Poppins" appearing in this chapter is Death. She was created by Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean and is the property of DC Comics. She has been used for entertainment purposes and not for profit. So please don't sue, but rather go out and buy one of her books.

Peachy keen!


	10. Chapter Ten

Dark Storm Dawn

By Lord Akiyama

The follow-up to "Fantasia Crisis"

* * *

Chapter Ten 

"You were really great out there," Quasimodo said with a smile. Night fell across Paris and they were walking gingerly through the streets from the circus to Notre Dame.

"Ah, me?" Madellaine sheepishly said, turning away a little with a smile of her own and sharing a light laugh with him. "Nothing to it. I just stand there and look pretty, you know?" She found a small concrete railing to walk upon as she mocked what she did for a living, playfully taking his hat and using it. "La de dum, ho de do. No big deal."

"No," he protested with encouragement. "No, i-it is a big deal." He quickly dashed along and hoped up right in front of her. "You... you have to make the audience look where the audience is supposed to look, not give away the trick."

"Hmmm..." she said, continuing to playfully go along with his enjoyment. "You mean like... hocus their pocus?" She gently tapped her finger upon his chest, watching him laugh along before she began to twirl the hat with her other finger. "Delusion their illusion?" She then dropped the hat over his head, covering his eyes. The two laughed with jolly.

"Abra their cadabra?" he added as they laughed some more. After he took of his hat, silence overcame them as they looked into one another's eyes.

"Well..." she said, sheepishly looking away. "Sharing a stage with a flying elephant is one thing. But I still would love to walk the tightrope." She turned and pretended to walk upon the edge of the railing, only to quickly lose her balance. He quickly grabbed her hand and pulled her back up. "Oh..." she added with a nervous giggle. "But... I'm not really very good at it."

"Oh, I don't believe that," Quasimodo said with a gentle smile. "I'm sure you can do anything."

Madellaine was taken aback with awe for a moment before forming a gentle smile of her own while looking down. Those were very touching words indeed. She opened her eyes and found herself once again looking at his. The stared in silence before he suddenly noticed the way he was holding her hand. Almost holding it close to his lips. He nervously, yet gently let go and sheepishly looked to one side. They were both blushing.

Quasimodo coughed upon breaking the silence. "Paris is r-really pretty," he managed to utter, slowly spinning his hat with both hands and glancing up at the sky. "I-I mean, you... you've probably seen it already... but then... maybe you haven't. A-And if you haven't... then... then maybe we could..." He looked down, scratching his head as he tried to find the right words to say. "I could... y-you know... show you." Nervously, he formed a smile and looked over to her.

"I'd really like that," she said with gently softness.

Moments later, she closed her eyes and brought her hand up for him to hold. Slowly, yet gently he widened his smile a little and took her hand in his. She almost exhaled upon the feel of his touch before they opened their eyes together. Soon, they hoped off the railing and began to run further into the city, their smiles wider than before.

* * *

"If you ask me, mate," Jack began to whisper to Peter. "They look a bit... eunuch... to me."

Peter rolled his eye and stepped away from Jack as the two eventually followed Tarzan to meet the others in what the latter called a mystic plane. Jack came to a sudden stop, however, when he saw familiar clothing on one of them. As if his eyes weren't already widened with shock, the figure had a face that was rather feline in nature. And she just happened to notice him as well.

"That's a pirate!" she snarled.

Before she could react, Jack began to back away very quickly. As he turned, he nearly ran into a blonde woman approaching and ended up falling on his bottom. He gasped as he ended being face to face with a lion.

"Who's this?" Simba asked, curiously raising a brow.

"It talks!" Jack cried as he began to slowly push himself away. "And me without me rum!"

"Of course he talks, and by the looks of things, he's probably a good deal more articulate than you," Helga wrinkled her nose at the rather potent addition to the group.

"I know that voice," Peter said, looking over his right shoulder to see Helga standing before the fallen Jack. He smirked at the recognition of her figure. "Fancy seeing you again, Miss."

"I didn't know we were letting in just any riff-raff now," Helga sneered.

"This one I'm curious about," Amelia sneered as she marched over and picked Jack up by the collar. "Alright, pirate. Who are you and why are you here?"

"The payment's honest, I swear," Jack managed to mumble, staring into his holder's eyes. "Ask them, they'll tell you!" he added, trying to point to Tarzan and Peter.

"He help us cure Neverland," Tarzan said. "We help get his ship back. Used by gunmen."

"So now we're taking on mercenaries of our own?" Helga arched a careful eyebrow. "Why do I have the feeling this has disaster written all over it?"

"He means those gunmen that are going after you guys are using Jack's ship to get from on place to another," Peter said. "I don't like the idea of him being involved with anything, but he did help us out in Neverland when we badly needed it." He then turned and showed off the bloodstained cloth that covered his left eye.

"Sounds like things have just been going swimmingly all around," Helga inhaled sharply, but kept a stone unreadable expression. "As it happens, we brought our own party crasher."

Alice stepped forward and took a good look at the group before her and then grinned. "Now this is my kind of party," she said.

Seconds later, the Cheshire Cat appeared sitting upon her shoulders. "A wild party indeed," he added.

"It will certainly give you a headache in the morning," Helga mumbled sarcastically. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm sure Alexandra is hungry by now and Heaven help us if Chris tried to change a diaper on his own."

"Just in time," Chris grinned. "She just woke up from a rather long nap." He walked up to his wife with their child cradled in his arms.

"I was always good with my timing," Helga smiled as she laid a quick kiss on his cheek before taking the yawning bundle from his arms. "You have no idea how glad I am to see both of you."

"Alright, let's get all this cleared out of the way before I decide to do something stupid," Amelia said, placing Jack back on feet while retaining her leer upon him. "The gunmen are using this pirate's ship to get from one place to another. What kind of ship is this supposed to be?"

"It's supposed to be a regular pirate ship," Jack answered proudly.

"Obviously upgraded to fill their needs," Aladdin added. "What else did you guys learn from Neverland?"

"Plague caused by cursed pirates," Tarzan replied. "Gunmen and Clayton attacked after we lifted curse. They took Sprite, but Clayton met his demise."

"So the plague in Neverland was caused by pirates who were cursed," Simba said. "After you guys lifted the curse, the gunmen attacked. One of them is now out of the picture, but we lost Spring Sprite in the process."

"I'm glad you're all so calm about this," Helga glared slightly. "That thing that used to be a queen almost got Simba and me earlier, too. Unless we figure out just who this 'Guild' is, they're just going to take us all out one by one and I can tell you right now, I will not go quietly."

"More pieces to the puzzle," Amelia sighed. "Dash it all. What else did you learn in Wonderland?"

"Well, the weapons used to take down Yen Sid was created by someone named Yzma," Simba replied. "And that the formula is only something the dead would know how to put together."

"So how is Hercules's uncle these days?" Helga added.

"Frustrated beyond belief," Hercules said as he and Mulan entered the room. "We couldn't take the waiting so we went off to speak with Hades, only to find him in a bit of a predicament of his own. Luckily, we got some information without having to make some deal with him."

"Believe me, that is one of the strangest sights I have ever seen," Mulan sighed. She then looked up and noticed there were more people than she remembered. "Wow. New faces."

"Oh, I'm sure we're going to see a lot stranger before this is over," Helga said as she brushed her finger over Alexandra's cheek. "So I assume his highness of the dead denied being involved in all this?"

"He's a bit preoccupied to concern himself with anything at the moment," Mulan nodded. "But we did learn that a friend of yours is, or was, a member of this guild that's attacking us, Helga."

"I find it hard to believe I have any friends around, but do tell?" Helga arched an eyebrow, immediately at attention.

"Someone by the name of Whitmore, I think," Hercules said.

"Want to run that by me again?" Helga practically growled and shouted at the same time. She realized too late that she should have watched her temper as Alexandra burst into tears. "Shhh, it's alright," she whispered as she gently bounced her up and down, though she didn't even believe those words herself. "So what is this about Mr. Whitmore?"

"Hades wasn't exactly too forthcoming about whether or not Whitmore is or was a member of the guild," Mulan said. "Just that you knew him and he has a membership."

"That's easily solved," Helga muttered as her eyes narrowed. "I'll just pay him a little uninvited visit."

"You're not the only one with such a plan, Ms. Sinclair," Amelia sighed. "Simba, I think I can get in touch with someone who can help us. At the same time, Helga can go see this Whitmore fellow. We just need to figure out who tag along with us."

"Where exactly are you going?" Simba asked.

"I'm hoping to return to my place and see if a young lad I know will be of use," Amelia replied.

"Then I hope you don't mind bringing this pirate fellow with you," Simba said.

Amelia glared at Jack for a moment before a smirk came across her face. "I'm sure we can find something useful for him," she said.

Jack raised an brow in confusion. "And how come I don't have any say in this?" he asked.

"Because you wanted to be a part of this, you moron," Peter sneered, rolling his eye.

"Bring Aladdin as well," Simba said before turning to Helga. "You don't mind if Alice and Hercules join you in visiting your friend, do you?"

"As long as they can behave themselves and do exactly as I say," Helga straightened a bit. It was odd, but even in the light of this possible betrayal, she still felt the need to keep up the old protocol.

* * *

"Clayton's sacrifice will not be in vain," Frollo said with a grin. "Excellent work in capturing the Sprite. We are very much moving along much faster in accomplishing our goal."

"But surely the loss of Neverland and Wonderland will delay us," Yzma said. "We have not extracted enough energy to go forward once we are ready. And it was much difficult locating the sources to extract from in the first place."

"Patience, Yzma," Frollo said. "An opportunity will present itself soon enough. Our being ahead of schedule will give us the time we need to retrieve the energy we need." He then began to cough violently, leaning over as he hacked away before coming to a breathing stop. "Though sooner would be best."

"Just be lucky the alien and the other gunman isn't here to see this," Yzma said, snatching a cloth nearby and handing it to him. "You know we cannot keep this up forever."

"We don't need to keep this up forever," he said, slowly standing straight up as he wiped his face of sweat. "Once everything is in place, it won't matter whether or not they know."

"In tha meantime, we find another energy hotspot and keep nabbin' them 'necessities' fer ya," the familiar voice leaning against the door said. They turned to see Rico spit some tobacco into the fireplace, causing the fire to burst into a huge flame. "And it just so happens I might have an idea."

"What could you possibly come up with, Rico?" Yzma asked, casting a suspicious glare at him.

"Let him speak," Frollo said. "It's not like he's one of the others, so what difference would it make."

"My thoughts exactly," Rico snorted. "Any way, ya know how them 'necessities' are startin' ta acquire outside help, yeah?" The other two nodded. "Well, I suggest we use that ta our advantage. Because I know an energy hotspot we can extract from. It fact, it would provide us wit a lil' extra on tha side in case we need 'em."

"You're not suggesting what I think you're suggesting," Yzma said.

"Yep," Rico grinned. "Of course, ya know how that devil guy liked ta talk about downsides an everything? Well, this plan I have has a pretty big downside. Which is why I'm just suggesting it as opposed to flat out saying we should go through wit it."

"You can't be serious," Yzma sighed. "The risk is far too great. It could end up getting one of the 'necessities' killed, and we all know we need them alive for us to accomplish our plans."

"I'm just throwing it out as an option, that's all," Rico said. "If ya got any better ideas and better hotspots we can extract from, I can work wit it."

Frollo took a deep breath and exhaled through his nose as he stared at the fireplace for a moment, thinking about the suggestion Rico was no doubt making reference to. It was mentioned earlier before the whole operation went to work, but was quickly dismissed as being too risky to pull off. But now it seemed like they just might make it work.

"We only have one chance to make it work," he said. "I want you personally in charge of making sure it doesn't fail, Rico. And it has come to my attention that Hades has indeed given them information that would indeed be useful to them. So you don't have much time in getting ready. I'll make sure he's there and understands what needs to be done."

* * *

to be continued...

Thanks to GoblinQueeen, who provided the dialogue and some action for Helga.


	11. Chapter Eleven

Dark Storm Dawn

By Lord Akiyama

The follow-up to "Fantasia Crisis"

* * *

Chapter Eleven 

He stopped off the ship and took a deep sniff of the air. He exhaled with a smile on his face. He was home. He turned his head to watch as he flipped a coin over to the flight servant before walking down the ramp. His foot stepped upon the soil surface on Montressor and began to chuckle. It had been quite a number of years since he had last been here, his time spent studying at the Interstellar Academy. Today was the start of a two month break.

"And you couldn't have asked for it arrive any sooner I presume, Mr. Hawkins?" He turned to see the familiar grinning face of one Captain Amelia standing proudly before him.

"Ma'am," he said with a smile. "I'm just happy to be home."

"Ah, the end of the first many years are always the roughest," Amelia said. "I remember my first three being quite a challenge physically, mentally and emotionally. But that's exactly the point. You are pushed to your limits to see if you can handle the pressure and go a little further."

"Is that what it was?" he chuckled. "For the past year, I thought it was an excuse to break their rules even more."

"And that, too," Amelia laughed. "Coincidentally, I have also returned home from a little bit of business that required my attention. I wish to speak with you about something, but I take it you want to see your mother."

"I'd have some explaining to do if I didn't," he chuckled once again. "She wrote to me every week, making sure I was okay and that my grades were in check. You'd think an honest grade would reassure her how happy I am there."

"One thing you should remember, Mr. Hawkins," Amelia grinned. "Mothers will always be worried regardless of how old you are and what you do for a living. There's no escaping it. Something my children will learn in time. But first, before we embark on our return to the Benbow Inn, allow me to introduce you to a couple companions helping me resolve the state of business I find myself in."

Amelia stepped back to present two oddly clothed figures behind her. "Gentlemen, allow me to introduce to you a dear friend of mine, James Pleiades Hawkins," she said. "Sterling, tough, dependable, honest, brave and true."

"Captain..." Jim smiled with a raised brow.

"Oh, shut up Jim, you know I don't mean a word of it," Amelia grinned in return. "May I present to you this young man by the name of Aladdin."

"Nice to meet you, kid," Aladdin said, shaking Jim's hand.

"Quite the company you have here, Captain," Jim grinned with a raised brow.

"You have no idea," Aladdin said.

"Which brings me, reluctantly, to my other... companion," Amelia said, glaring at the other figure. "This... ludicrous parcel of driveling galoot... goes by the name of Jack Sparrow."

Jack staggered up after giving a glancing glare back at Amelia. He then began to slowly circle Jim, examining every inch of him. After the third time around, Jack came to a stop in front of Jim and began to sniff him. Jim was extremely unsure of what to think as he raised a brow in confusion and leaned his upper body back. Jack then looked up, his eyes staring straight at the other. "Yer not a eunuch, are you?" he asked.

"A what?" Jim asked in a dumbfounded state.

"Don't be surprised by his mannerisms, Jim," Amelia said as she placed a clutching hand upon Jack's shoulder. "After all... he is a pirate."

"Pirate, eh?" Jim asked, his brow still raised in confusion.

"I'll explain later," Amelia said, giving another glare at Jack. "Right now, I believe your mother is waiting as patiently as she can be. Let's not keep her waiting any longer."

* * *

Quasimodo and Madellaine walked alongside the river, their evening together flowing just as smoothly. They had spent the past few hours exploring all that they could within the city. Watching the street performances of the gypsies, tasting the edible delights from the bakers, listening to the rhythmic harmonies of wandering musicians. Quasimodo felt better knowing that his appearance was disguised quite well, and yet the way things went it made him forget about his troubles. Madellaine was having the time of her life, experiencing new wonders unlike any she had ever imagined. It was truly becoming a night they would never forget.

He spotted up ahead and with a smile jogged over. She took her time walking as she watched him come to a stop and remove something from the steps. She took one look at it and raised a curious brow. "I... think those are weeds," she lightly giggled as he showed her what he hand in his hand.

"Oh, no," he pointed out with a smile. "Smell." He took his free hand and gently covered her eyes. Without hesitation, she trusted him and took a good sniff before he removed his hand.

"Oh..." she exhaled softly with awe. "They smell so... flowery." She giggled as she placed a hand upon his that was holding the plant. "They're wonderful."

"It's rosemary," he said.

"Rosemary..." she repeated softly, looking at the plant with a gentle smile on her face. She then watched as he transferred the plant from his hand into hers. They lightly laughed as their eyes began to meet.

"Come on," he whispered, using his free hand to take hers and leading her on up the stairs toward a tower. Their laughter continued as they began to ascend the stairs leading to the top. "This is one of my favorite spots in all of Paris." Their running began to slow as they came within a few steps of the top. "Isn't it beautiful?"

"But I... I can't see anything..." she tried to lightly giggle.

"Close your eyes," he whispered. She looked at him for a moment, seeing the smile on his face as he gently released her hand. "Listen... to Paris."

She took a deep breath and then closed her eyes, once again trusting him without hesitation that he is presenting something special to her. At first, all she could hear was the hallowing whistles of the wind echoing through the tower. And then, she slowly began to hear the voices of children. They were laughing and playing along carefree and full of life. She then began to hear music being played from the streets below. The huffs of horses clicking against the ground as they walked. Ordinary citizens speaking and laughing, enjoying all that there is to offer. The children were beginning to sing. Their voices innocent and beautiful.

And then came the click of a door unlocking and the creaking of wood as the door began to open. Slowly, she began to feel light touch upon her face. She then opened her eyes. And saw beauty. The sight of Paris upon the top of Notre Dame at sunset was one thing. Seeing the city and the cathedral at night from this point of view after hearing the voices of life throughout quite possibly made this sight better. She gasped in awe and delight as she stepped forward through the doorway, letting herself feel city upon her. To say that it was magnificent was an understatement.

"Oh..." she exhaled softly. "Quasi... it's wonderful..." She came upon the concrete railing and supported herself upon it as her eyes took in everything there was to see of Paris from where she stood. Her ears taking in every sound that echoed through the air. She herself had never felt more alive.

Quasimodo smiled as he looked out on the city. This spot was special for him amongst the few times he took a risk and left the domain of the bell tower to explore all there was of Paris, keeping himself away from the streets so that he would no be spotted. The majestic beauty of this view made it all worth while for him. He then turned his gaze upon Madellaine. Sharing this view with her became even more rewarding to him as his smile widened.

"Oh, come on," she said with laughter after a moment of silence taking in all of Paris from his spot. "Show me more!" She turned her eyes with excitement, looking upon him to answer with as much glee.

Quasimodo took a moment before hopping up on the railing and grabbing hold of the rope the hung near him. He outstretched a hand for her to take. No hesitation, yet so much trust. She grabbed hold of his hand. She gasped and laughed as he quite quickly pulled her in for him to carry before he swung off toward the rooftops.

* * *

"Helga!" the old man called from the fireplace with a bit of laughter. With cain he hand, he began to walk toward her. "Quite a surprise seeing you here. And with friends. I've been meaning to ask. How went the pregnancy?"

"It went well," Helga replied guardedly. If he was knowingly involved with a group trying to bring about her destruction, he was hiding it well. "I would have sent you a birth announcement a few days ago, but we've been unavoidably detained. This is Mr. Hercules and Miss Alice," she added with a small gesture. "And this, is Mr. Preston Whitmore."

"Hercules?" Preston said with a raised brow and excited tone as he shook the other's hand. "As in the Greek God? Boy, you weren't kidding about that adventure you took the last time we talked, Helga." He then turned to the young girl. "Alice as in Alice in Wonderland, I presume?" he added as he shook the girl's hand.

"Something like that," Alice replied.

"You know me, I don't kid very often," Helga shook her head, not wanting to believe the worst, but the serious expression still dominated her features. "Torment and taunt mercilessly, yes, but not kid." She paused a second as she chose her next words. "I'm sorry we didn't call first, but under the circumstances, I thought it was better this way. We need some answers to some sensitive questions."

"Fire away," Preston said, seating himself in the nearest chair. "Make yourselves comfortable and don't worry, I already completed my yoga for today." Alice and Hercules looked at one another, shrugged, and decided to examine their surroundings.

"Good to know," Helga nodded appreciatively as she seated herself across from him, crossing one long leg over the other. "I understand you've recently made some new friends," she began with the same expressionless tone, "some people calling themselves The Guild."

"The Guild..." Preston repeated as he entered his mind. "Lot of guilds I've had membership in. Hmmm... I'm gonna need more information, Helga. You know any names connected to this 'Guild' that I could work off of?"

"This one's rather unique," Helga replied, still carefully studying the other's reaction. "They deal in weapons of the dead and seem to have a hostile vendetta against those involved with the merging a while back. Unfortunately, the only name I have is Yzma, but I was told by an unreliable source you might know something."

"Yzma..." Preston muttered. Then he began to groan. "Ooooh... THAT Guild. And people say I'm a wacky old man. I'm surprised these weirdos aren't running for public office the way they go screaming on and on about human preservation." He then thought about what Helga said earlier. "Sounds to me I left the club early enough to rid myself of dealings with them. They have weapons of the dead?"

"So we've been told and given what they've been able to do so far, I'm inclined to believe the rumors," Helga muttered grimly. "They're hunting us down one by one, Preston," she added quietly. "We've already lost five out of the original twelve of us, plus the wizard that is supposed to be the strongest being in existence. Anything you can tell us about them would be useful."

Preston looked at Helga straight in the eye. He'd never seen her like this. He took a deep breath and stood up. "Few know they exist, but they do have an actual name," he said as he began walking toward the nearest bookshelf. "The guild is known as GHOST, or Guild for Human Organization and Safety Tribunal."

"Yeah right, safety," Alice muttered to herself as she examined the small scale model of a submarine. "Tell that to my parents, human beings whom those bastards killed to drive me insane."

"So why are they coming after us?" Helga shot back defensively.

"The goal of GHOST was supposed to be the preservation of humanity's control over their own lives and destiny," Preston said, scanning the books for a particular selection. "My curiosity led to my joining them, but I soon found myself wondering who exactly these oddities were. The longer I stayed, the more I heard about them wanting to rid the planet of magic and all other fantasy incarnations. I didn't stay long enough to know why you're all targets, but my best guess is that you either represent a threat to their ideals or were chosen to be made examples out of to show just how serious they were about achieving their goals."

"Ok, that could explain the wizard and a few others," Helga said as she glanced at Hercules, "but last time I checked, I'm about as un-magic as they come and that didn't seem to stop them." She stood up with a slightly frustrated sigh as she began to pace in front of the fire. "So did you stay long enough to find out who was in charge?"

"There are three main operators of GHOST," Whitmore said, satisfied as he found the book he was looking for. He flipped through until he found a specific page. "I recorded as much information as I could in this book. But you have to remember that its not up to date so there may have been changes I'm not aware of. The first operator is Yzma." He laid the book out to show Helga the picture of an old woman in desperate need of a face lift. "Don't let her looks fool you. She's as brilliant of a scientist as they come."

"It's a wonder she didn't come up with something to help those wrinkles," Helga wrinkled her nose as she came to stand behind him. "She looks...well..." she added, tilting her head as she tried to come up with the right words.

"Scary beyond all reason, I know," Preston said. "But the same can be said, in terms of his abilities and personality, about the second operator." He flipped the pages until he stopped at the photo of a cowboy in black. "His name is Rico. This bounty hunter is one of the absolute best marksmen I have ever seen, Helga. And I've seen many. Rico can pull the trigger faster than you can even glance to your right."

"Nice, but I'm not exactly a novice myself, there," Helga smirked. "That's why you hired me, remember?"

"I hire the best," Preston said with a grin. "Now the third operator is probably the biggest wacko of them all." He turned the pages and came upon the picture of a face Helga was familiar with. "His name is Judge Claude Frollo."

Helga stared in stunned silence for a moment before clenching her fist so hard, if she hadn't been wearing gloves, she might have drawn blood. "Now him, I am well acquainted with," she hissed.

"Then you know full well just how crazy he is," Preston said. "But it is that very same lunatic attitude that has allowed him to amass great wealth and power. If either of these three were to be considered the head of the group, it would be him."

"Crazy doesn't begin to cover it," Helga voice rumbled deep in her chest. "He tried tried to burn me at the stake."

"People still believe in those practices?" Alice curiously muttered, still examining the small scale model. Moments later, she saw the familiar grin of the Cheshire Cat appear on her shoulder.

"Must take a lot of imagination to find public interest in watching someone tied to a stake and then burned alive," he whispered. His purring against her ear caused her to close her eyes and smile, as if she felt warmth from his voice. "Stay on guard, my dear Alice. Some things don't often appear what they are made out to be." She opened her eyes just as he was disappearing. Her smile faded immediately and began to scan the room. His warnings tended to be accurate and she didn't want to chance not believing what would've normally been a figment of her imagination.

"Ouch," Preston muttered. "I can only imagine it wasn't pretty. You might as well take the book. Like I said, they may have made changes since I left, but I'm confident it'll be helpful for you."

"At least now we'll know who we're dealing with," Helga nodded appreciatively as she took the tome in her hands. "I don't know if Frollo is still where we left him, but it's some place to start. Unfortunately, we don't have that luxury with the Yzma woman, but as for Rico, I have a nasty suspicion we won't have to look, he'll find us."

"Just not today," a voice spoke. Everyone looked up just as the lights began to turn out. All that they could see was the blue light that emerged from Whitmore's fish tank. It was then they noticed that there was something that was blending with the tank.

"What the hell...?" Alice muttered as she squinted and watched as the blending object began to move.

"Consider it luck I'm being paid not to kill you this time," the voice spoke once more. To Helga and Whitmore, it was becoming more much familiar. It was then that the object began to slowly materialize. "Otherwise, this would have been very personal." The face was unmistakable.

"Rourke?" Preston gasped.

"No..." Helga's voice caught in her throat for just a split second before a burning sense of hatred took control. "You were dead! I saw you fall off that train!"

"Lemme let you in on something I learned a long time ago, Helga," Rourke said, his arms materializing into long blades. "When you kill someone... make sure they're dead."

"Mr. Whitmore, get down," Helga shouted quickly as she fired off a couple shots. She didn't expect them to do much damage, but it was at least a small distraction as she tossed the book over to Alice. It wasn't her he was after and if anything happened to the rest of them, it was imperative that Simba and the others find out what they had learned.

"Thanks for the advice," she replied sweetly to Rourke, though not masking the sarcasm in her voice, "I'll be sure to keep that in mind this time."

Rourke barely reacted as the bullets dug into his body. Quite quickly, the wounds crystallized and healed. "This would otherwise have been quite a wonderful dance, Lieutenant," he chuckled. Within seconds, he had leaped, tackled her to the ground and jammed one of his blades into her left shoulder. Helga let out a sharp cry as the blade pierced her flesh. "But I have since ignored such patience."

"Too bad you always had two left feet," she hissed through clenched teeth as she leveraged her foot under his stomach and pushed him back.

As Rourke staggered back in reaction, Hercules immediately grabbed him from behind. "We need to get outta here!" Hercules cried, struggling to retain his strength and hold. "This room is too small for us!"

"The elevator's too slow," Preston said as he and Alice checked on Helga. "You still remember the secret passage outta here?"

"Of course, part of the job description," Helga replied slowly through the pain as she clutched her shoulder. Taking a deep breath, she pushed herself off the ground and ran for the bookshelf. She yanked down on the stone gargoyle seated precariously on the edge and suddenly the fire in the fireplace died down. With a delayed lurch, the wall in the back slid open to reveal the passage. "Let's move people," she shouted to the others.

Preston walked over to the side opposite the bookshelf, barely noticing that he missed being knocked to the ground when Rourke easily flung Hercules over his shoulder. "You guys go ahead," he said, stopping in front of the scale model of the Ulysses. "I'll hold him off for you." With a simple push of a button, guns descended from the ceiling and began to fire at Rourke.

Helga started to object. After all, protecting Whitmore had been her job for a long time. But she also had an obligation to her teammates. "Thank you," was all she could think to say in the end. "You heard the man, sometime today would be nice Mr. Hercules."

Hercules quickly got back to his feet and quickly followed Helga and Alice into the secret passage. The doors began to close just as Whitmore pressed another button that caused the glass wall covering his water tank to explode. "Lemme be in front in case you need me to move something quickly," Hercules suggested.

"Let it never be said you don't serve a useful purpose," Helga muttered as she let him pass into the lead, still clutching her throbbing shoulder. Really, it could be worse, it could be her right arm and then she'd really be in trouble. Actually, it wasn't even bleeding all that badly. Still, she'd make Rourke pay for this one.

They continued to make their way down the passage way until they found themselves outside of Whitmore's property. And it was raining hard. "Alright," Hercules began to say, surveying the area before turning to Helga. "What do we do..."

Gunfire. Hercules barely screamed before he went flying to the right and landing hard against the muddy ground. Alice quickly reacted and threw a playing card in the direction of the gunfire, just missing the cowboy's hat. He ducked and began to dash off before reloading.

"You know, just once, I'd like to be wrong about these things," Helga muttered under her breath as she let go of her shoulder and in a moment too quick to count, had her gun out to return fire. The cowboy rolled successfully behind a tree as Helga and Alice continued their attack. But they paid no attention as a second gunman quickly grabbed the unconscious Hercules and made his escape over the cliff.

"Hercules, are you all right?" Helga called over her shoulder. "Hercules?" she repeated again after getting no answer and spun around to see the empty ground where he had fallen. "Damnit, I can't believe I fell for that trick," she cursed herself as she tried to see where they might have gone.

"We're gonna fall for another one if we don't either retreat or take this other hunter down," Alice said, pulling out her ice staff. "And in this case, its me that's gonna be protecting you."

"I don't need anyone to protect me," Helga growled indignantly, though down one arm, she knew it wasn't like she could refuse the help, either. She crouched down to look at the mud, but being it was still raining, the trail was being washed away fast. "This way," she shouted. If they're carrying someone Hercules' size, they can't be moving too fast.

"Whoa, wait a minute!" Alice cried. Seconds later, she raised her ice staff and fired a beam that quickly froze a projectile that would've hit Helga head on. "We still got a gunman about!"

"And if we don't stop them from taking Hercules, they're going to have an even half-dozen," Helga shouted back, but the girl was right, they were going to be forced to take the gunman down first. Still, if they did it right, they might get a few questions answered in the process. "Think you can draw his fire for me?" Helga whispered.

"Eyes set upon you," a familiar voice spoke, followed seconds later by the appearance of the familiar grin of the Cheshire Cat. "My dear Alice is of little concern to them. They will sneak their way around her view to take you down."

"Baldy has a point," Helga admitted with a grimace. "Alright then, what do you suggest?"

"I suggest I take the three of you and get out of here, pronto!" They turned to see Merlin appear before them. "I'm not taking any bloody arguments, Ms. Sinclair! Any second longer I stay here, the greater chance they're gonna start turning their attentions to me! We're leaving! Now!" Seconds later, with a wave of his wand, their surroundings turned into darkness. Moments later, they were in the mystic plane.

* * *

to be continued...

Thanks to GoblinQueeen, who provided the dialogue and some action for Helga.


	12. Chapter Twelve

Dark Storm Dawn

By Lord Akiyama

The follow-up to "Fantasia Crisis"

* * *

Chapter Twelve 

There wasn't even a pause of silence. The very minute Sarah Hawkins opened the door and caught even a glimpse of her son she pulled him in and embraced him with all her heart. Jim chuckled as he returned the hug. Moments later, Sarah held him out to get a good look at him with a smile. "Look at you," she whispered. "You're so handsome!" She pulled him back in for another heartfelt embrace.

"It's good to see you to, mom," Jim chuckled through the embrace.

Sarah lightly laughed before she finally released her hold over him. She turned to see Amelia's familiar grinning form. "And nice to see you again, Amelia," she said.

"Sarah," Amelia nodded. "I hope you don't mind if I brought company with me."

"No problem, we just closed for the night," Sarah said, waving them in. "I'm sure we've got plenty left in the kitchen for them to have if they're hungry."

"Jimmy!" a familiar voice called. Jim looked up to see B.E.N. and Morph crowd him with hugs and laughter. "This is fantastic! You're back!"

"You're back, you're back, you're back!" Morph called.

"It's great to see you guys, too," Jim chuckled. "I hope you guys have been taking care of mom."

"Oy!" a muffled cried from the kitchen. "Is that yer son that just walked thru tha door, Mrs. Hawkins?"

Jim and Amelia widened their eyes in surprise upon recognition of the voice. They looked at one another for a moment before turning to Sarah. "Oh, I've been meaning to tell you about my new chef," she giggled. "He's been here for a year now and said he's a good friend of you both."

The door from the kitchen flung open and it was exactly who Jim and Amelia thought it was. The huge grin to match his huge belly and the cybernetics that covered half his body. "Jimbo!" he laughed.

"Silver?" Jim and Amelia whispered in unison.

"And look at ya," Silver said as he came up to the young man who was the center of attention. "Yer as handsome as a rust-free bolt! I bet 'cha made yer mum proud, didn't he Mrs. Hawkins?"

"He sure did, John," Sarah said with a smile.

"John?" Jim and Amelia said, look at each other with raised brows of confusion.

"And who's this ya brought wit ya?" Silver laughed. "Friends from tha Academy?"

"They're... companions of mine... Silver..." Amelia managed to muttered, still confused over the whole situation unfolding before her. "They're helping me with... business that requires my... attention..."

"Is that so?" Silver said. Then he shrugged. "Ah, ain't none of me business to know what yer up ta, Cap'n." His eyes then came upon the odd figure of Jack Sparrow. "Luv tha outfit, mate."

"You seem somewhat familiar," Jack slurred, examining Silver from head to toe. "Have I threatened you before?"

Silver started to laugh heartily as he wrapped his normal arm around Jack's shoulder. "Oh, I like this lad already, Cap'n," he said. "Tell ya what. I was about ta have meself a drink. Why don't ya join me and we can swap stories."

"If ya got rum, I want tha whole barrel," Jack grinned. "I haven't had a drink in a while and me stomach's been pissed."

Jim, Amelia and Aladdin watched with raised brows as Silver and Jack laughed their way into the kitchen. Jim then slowly turned his eyes to his mother. "Mom," he started to say. "Tell me you didn't hire a pirate to run your kitchen."

"I admit, I was very worried and concerned," Sarah said, her smile still upon her face. "But I needed the help and he's been a benefit here ever since. And before you ask, no he hasn't stolen anything yet. Besides... he's quite a charmer."

"What?" Jim cried.

* * *

"I can't believe you just left Hercules back there!" Helga shouted at Merlin furiously.

"Would you have had us risk losing the both of you instead!" Merlin shouted back. "And do you really think that just because Alice wasn't one of the twelve they were just gonna let her walk off without a bloody scratch!"

"Still, you seem to be making a habit out of leaving people behind," Helga returned, her voice calm, but the tone unmistakably harsh. She winced as a small wave of pain ran through her shoulder. He was right, she knew he was right, but it helped somehow to be able to yell at someone.

"That was my call," a voice said. They turned to see Simba approach them. "Cheshire appeared, telling us that something was attacking you guys. I made the conscious decision to get you guys out of there immediately regardless of whatever happened." He then looked up and noticed with widened eyes the injury on Helga's shoulder. "And from the looks of it, it probably was better getting you out of there. I think that cut you got there is growing."

"It's just a scratch," Helga muttered, not quite meeting his eyes as she moved to pull off her sweater so she could try to make up some kind of bandage for it. "We ran into Rourke of all people and things just went downhill from there. Mr. Whitmore was able to tell us about the Guild. They call themselves GHOST and he gave us a book with some of their members. We really should send someone to make sure he's alright," she added, finally clearing the sweater over her head with an internal wince.

Everyone who had their eyes on Helga gasped and were suddenly taken aback. "My gosh," Simba said, his eyes wider than ever in horror. "What did he do to you?"

"He just stabbed me in the shoulder..." Helga answered the other with obvious confusion before she looked down and saw for herself. Gingerly, she raised her other arm and felt along the solid mass of blue that had already spread over most of her shoulder. The look in her eyes was one of pure apprehension and horror. "That ba..." she started to shout, but then caught sight of Alice. "Cover your ears for just a moment please."

"Believe me, I've probably heard worse," Alice said.

"Hey Mickey," Simba called. "I think you need to take a look at this."

Helga muttered several even more color phrases under her breath as she looked around for something to hit. Mickey quickly ran up and examined the wound. "Goodness," he managed to say. "Simba made the right call in getting you out of there. This thing is growing at a pretty fast rate. I know of only two people who could cure this, and one of them is Yen Sid."

"And who's the other?" Helga shot back, resisting the urge to yank him up by his big round ears.

Mickey chuckled nervously, know she was not going to like the answer. "The Queen of Atlantis," he replied.

"Oh great!" Helga threw up her hands in frustration as she turned away. "I know, why don't I just go turn myself over to The Guild and save us all some time."

"That wouldn't do any good either," Mickey tried to reason. "If you don't get this wound treated soon, you're as good as dead."

"Merlin!" Helga bellowed. "Punching bag, now!"

"Whoa, what's going on?" Some managed to turn to see Chris, cradling his daughter in his arms, appear in the conversation for the first time. He looked around before his eyes settled on Helga. And the wound on her arm. "Jesus..."

Helga turned away from him, her face flushing brightly with fresh humiliation. "It's nothing," she whispered after a moment. "Just go take care of Alexandra..."

Chris stood there for a moment, not saying a word and only listening to the sounds of his daughter's slurring of baby words. A concerned look overcoming him. "Helga..." he whispered. "What's wrong?"

"Will you just trust me?" Helga shot back, though there was more pain in her voice than anger. "I don't want you to see me like this..."

"Then let's get you that cure," Simba said. "So he won't have to see you like this."

"You just don't get it, do you?" Helga shouted as she turned on him. "I helped kill her father! What on earth makes you think there is even a remote hope of her helping me now?"

Simba took a deep breath and exhaled. "Which would you rather have?" he asked. "To try and ask her to help you despite the bad blood you two share? Or to not be there for your daughter when she grows up?"

Helga glared at him, the words obviously coming far too close to home. She took a breath and finally walked over to Chris and Alexandra, bringing her hand close to her daughter's face, but not touching just incase this thing could spread. "I suppose we might as well try," she relented at last, forcing back the tear that threatened to escape and ruin her reputation for good. "Worst they can do is just kill me now instead of later."

* * *

_"We're rascals, scoundrels, villains, and knaves  
Drink up, me 'earties, yo ho  
We're devils and black sheep, really bad eggs  
Drink up, me 'earties, yo ho"_

Aladdin flinched some more as the off key singing of a pair of drunk pirates started to get to his hearing. Amelia glared at Jack and Silver's improper behavior, watching them rock from side to side as they sung badly. Jim had his head buried into his arms that rested upon the table. Sarah had her eyes closed and formed a nervous smile.

_"Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me  
We're beggars and blighters, ne'er-do-well cads  
Drink up, me 'earties, yo ho  
Aye, but we're loved by our mommies and dads  
Drink up, me 'earties, yo ho"_

They both leaned back, opened their mouths, and poured the entire content of rum in each of their mugs. They didn't care if they didn't get all of it. Jack then hopped onto the table to finish off the singing. And his key was much worse than before. _"Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me!"_ In a quick moment, his body shifted weight he fell off the table and onto his back. They both laughed along before Silver leaned too much of his weight back and he himself fell to the floor.

"Are you sure you're not worried about having a pirate run your kitchen, mom?" Jim asked as he brought his head up from the table. "What would the customers say about seeing a passed out figure about."

"He only works the afternoon and night crowds," Sarah said. "B.E.N. is more than enough help in the mornings that I don't need another body then. And he doesn't mind sleeping outside should he end up drink too much that it causes him to pass out. Although he has toned down on the drinking as of late."

"Looks like you'll have two bodies to drag out there tonight, Sarah," Amelia sighed. "I apologize for that."

"No need," Sarah said. "I've grown used to it. I see nothing wrong in adding another body to the pile outside. But let's back to what you suggested earlier to Jim."

"It's completely voluntary, Jim," Amelia said. "You just got home for break and you don't have to join if you don't want to. I'm not forcing you to do anything."

"I know, I know," Jim sighed. "But at the same time, it's like I should, you know. You've done a lot for me and I haven't repaid you enough. I dunno, lemme think about it tonight and I'll let you know tomorrow."

"Do whatever you think needs to be done for your sake, Jim," Amelia said. "You are the one charting your own course in life, no one else." As Jim nodded upon hearing this, the two drunk pirates began to sing again.

_"We pillage, we plunder, we rifle, and loot  
Drink up, me 'earties, yo ho"_

Amelia slapped a hand upon her forehead, trying to keep her temper in check. Aladdin moaned as he covered his ears. Jim rolled his eyes up and slammed his head against the table. Sarah continued to smile.

* * *

Quasimodo and Madellaine laughed with jolly as they escaped the heavy rain outside and into Notre Dame cathedral. Taking her hand in his, he led her out of the main hall and up the stairs into the bell tower. The continued to laugh along, their evening together turning into quite an event of roof top acrobatics unlike any they had ever done before.

Once inside the bell tower, he lifted her in and then dashed over to a corner. He quickly lit a candle and threw up a cloth to make a cover. "You can dry off in here," he said to her.

"Thank you," she said with a smile. He stepped aside as she walked behind the cover and closed it. All that could be seen was her silhouette, drying her hair with another cloth. He smiled before turning and walking slowly over to the opposite side. He dropped both his damp hat and cloak onto the floor when he looked up at the gargoyle statues with a raised brow.

"Plan?" he asked quietly. They was a pause, as though they were speaking to him. "Uh..." Another pause before turning to one of the statues. "Soft music? Where am I..." He then turned to another statue. "Candlelight? What are you..." He then turned to a third statue, paused for a moment and then turned over to see pillows he had carelessly laid about in front of his self-made fireplace not long ago. "A what? A 'cozy tête-à-tête by the fire?' Wait a minute..."

Madellaine sneezed. He found himself nearly reacting with surprise, almost knocking into the statues. "Uh... uh..." he managed to utter. "G-Gesundheit!"

"Oh, thank you," she sniffled. Slowly, she came out and exhaled. She gently wrapped her arms around herself and noticed the pillows up ahead. She laughed lightly as she approached. "I guess a cozy little fire wouldn't hurt," she said.

"Oh, uh... yes, of course," he said with a nervous smile, quickly running over to get the fire going. "We should get warmed up." He watched as she gently sat herself upon one of the pillows before dashing over a grabbing a dry cloak from a pile nearby. Slowly, he placed the cloak upon her shoulders. "Here... put this on."

She raised a gentle smile as she held onto the cloak that hung from her shoulders and watched him take a seat upon a pillow next to her. "You're very kind," she said softly.

"Oh..." he sheepishly responded, looking away for a moment.

The smile on her face faded a little as she took a good look at him before turning back to the fire. "Do you..." she began to say. He turned to look at her with curiosity. "Do you... really think there's more to me than what you see? That I... that I have something else to give?" She turned to look him in the eyes and watched him lift a smile.

"I do," he replied. They looked at one another for a moment before his smile began to fade as well. And then he sheepishly looked away once more. "I know I'm not much to look at."

Madellaine blinked once and looked at him just a little more. She then leaned over and placed her hand underneath his chin, lifting his face to look upon hers a she raised her smile. "I've never met anyone like you, Quasimodo," she said quietly. She watched as a smile gently began to raise upon his face and their hands began to meet. "I mean, you understand the world better than anyone I've ever known."

Quasimodo looked down sheepishly, retaining his smile as he began to blush. "Do you really think so?" he asked as he looked back up to her.

Her gentle smile began to widen a little. "I do," she whispered.

Silence came over them as they looked into each other's eyes. He then raised his eyes, as if he remembered something. He turned and did indeed pull an object from his pocket. "I made this for you," he said. He opened her hand and placed a wooden figure within. With curiosity painted across her face, Madellaine brought it up to see that it was a wooden figure of her. "Now you can always see yourself... through my eyes."

She slowly brought the figure close to her heart as her eyes came back upon his. A gentle smile reformed as tears began to roll down her cheek. She closed her eyes again, her smile widening a little more. He looked with confusion, unsure of what he was seeing before him.

"Well, I should..." she began to mutter, her smile retained as she wiped a tear. "I... I mean... I... I'd better..." They both began to stand, him still not understanding what was happening as he watched the cloak fall off her shoulders and onto the pillows. "I-It's late and, well... I... I'm..." She began to giggle a little as a blush appeared upon her cheeks. "I'm... I'm... babbling again." She sighed with a smile as she turned to one side. "Stupid me."

She then looked down at the wooden figure for a moment. "No," she said quietly. "No, maybe I'm not." She looked up to face him with a smile. She took a deep breath and slowly approached him. "Thank you..." she whispered before placing a kiss upon his forehead. She kept her smiling gaze upon him as she made her way to the stairs, giggling a little as she looked at the happy surprise painted upon his face. "I-I-I'll see you tomorrow?" Her smile widened once more before she disappeared down the steps.

Quasimodo's expression remained when he slowly began to rock back and forth. And then he fell forward, the happiness and delight overtaking whatever pain he might have felt as he landed upon the floor.

* * *

to be continued...

Thanks to GoblinQueeen, who provided the dialogue and some action for Helga.


	13. Chapter Thirteen

Dark Storm Dawn

By Lord Akiyama

The follow-up to "Fantasia Crisis"

* * *

Chapter Thirteen 

Simba took a deep breath as he studied the expressions the Queen of Atlantis was giving out. Right off the bat, Kida was not pleased to see Helga in her presence once again. But at the same time, she was quite shocked to see what state the other was in. The crystal was spreading an increasingly progressive rate. More than ever, they needed her to put a stop to it. She took a moment to study Helga before coming to a conclusion of what to do.

"And you expect me to stop this disease you have caught?" she asked with a stern look upon Helga.

"Quite frankly, no, I don't," Helga gazed back evenly with one human eye, the other one glowing bright red, "but the over-grown house cat here insisted we come anyway," she added as she turned her gaze on Simba for a moment. She already felt enough like a freak without being put on the spot like this.

Kida sighed before turning her attention to Simba. "Why are you doing this?" she asked him firmly. "This woman has brought us grief and despair that cannot possibly be forgiven. Yet you give me the impression that she is of importance?"

"She has become very important to us," Simba replied. "She may not have extraordinary abilities or powers, but she is someone who I can count on when I need it."

"You can count on?" Kida asked with a shocked expression. "This woman? You count on her? You can honestly say that you are willing to put your life on the line for her?"

Simba nodded. "Yes, I can," he said.

Helga looked at Simba appreciatively. It was a small thing, but she knew he was absolutely sincere. He had proven that much when they first met. There was something nice about having people she could depend on like that again. "I've always been loyal and I've never broken my word to those I promised to help," she said raising her glowing eye to the queen again. "I can't help it if the people we swore our loyalty to were on different sides."

Kida took a deep breath, containing her anger as she looked into Helga's eyes. She then looked over at Simba. Obviously he understood something about this woman that she didn't. Her stern look came back upon Helga's, seeing the state the woman was in. "You say you never broke your word to a promise?" she said. "Will you be willing to keep your word to a promise with me?"

"That depends on what the promise is," Helga answered warily.

Kida took another deep breath. "I'll help you stop the spreading," she said. "In return, you take me with you until we put a stop to Rourke. His existence has come to further threaten my people and I cannot allow that to continue."

Helga clenched her fist for a moment. The last thing she wanted was this woman along making snide comments every chance she got, but there were two very good reasons to go along with it. "If it means taking down Rourke," she said at last with a hint of a smirk that glinted even more at the crystalline corner of her lips, "I'm willing to put up with you."

"Very well," Kida said, once more keeping her temper in check. She removed the crystal that hung from her neck and approached Helga. "Remember that I can only stop the spread and the effects. I cannot completely cure you. I have not learned enough yet as Milo still has much to decipher." She placed the tip of her crystal lightly against where cut originated. A light shined for a moment and then dimmed, closing the wound.

It was a strange sensation to Helga, like pure focused energy for a moment, then it was gone and she was left staring at a blue crystal arm that was quickly forming into a fist. Rourke was probably off gloating somewhere at having turned her into this... thing... but that would change, she'd make sure of that. Her eyes lifted back to the queen's, but she turned her attention away again before muttering, "Thank you."

Kida took a deep breath and turned her attention away as well. "You're welcome," she muttered.

Simba looked at the two and took a deep breath. "Well..." he managed to say after a cough. "Then I guess we need to make contact with one of the mages so we can be on our way."

"Not if I have anything to do about it." Everyone who was in the room had no clue where the voice was coming from, but Helga and Kida recognized the speaker all too well.

"No, he couldn't have..." Helga looked at Simba with a mix of apprehension and loathing before scanning the room carefully with her eyes. "Why don't you just slither your way out of the shadows," she yelled back, still searching. "Or are you that afraid of a couple women and a cat?"

"If you insist, Lieutenant," Rourke replied. Seconds later, he materialized behind Helga and nailed her from behind with a straight right. This caused her to knock down Kida along with her while Simba got into battle position before leaping at the attacking foe.

"Never could fight fair, could you?" Helga growled, pausing to offer Kida a hand up, but keeping her attention glued on Rourke.

"Is that not how he always fights?" Kida grunted before accepting Helga's hand instinctively. They watched as Rourke tossed Simba over their heads and into Kida's throne.

"Simba, stay down. Believe it or not, there was a time he didn't," Helga muttered ruefully to Kida, "but I think those times are long gone." Simba was about to say something, but soon found himself too exhausted to even keep his head up. "By the way, thanks for the little parting gift," she tossed back in Rourke's direction. "Shame I didn't get you anything."

"Oh believe me, you will," Rourke smirked. His left arm then began to crystallize and was soon morphed into a long blade. Seconds later, he lunged after the two women. Kida rolled toward the nearest weapon she could grab.

Helga threw her own crystal arm in the way of the blade. "Trust me," she hissed, "The days of you getting anything from me are over."

Kida grabbed the nearest spear and leaped into the fight. As this was going on, Simba managed to look out and notice something. A dark figure was leaning against a wall outside a nearby building. Simba squinted and saw that placed before the figure was what looked to be a bottle. And it was absorbing energy from the city. Simba squinted his eyes again in the hopes of getting a better look of the figure. He was wearing a hat and holding a gun.

"Helga!" Simba called, pushing himself up to his feet. "One of the gunmen is here! He's stealing energy from this place!"

"Aww, isn't that cute, you found a new playmate," Helga sneered smugly. "What direction?" she called over her shoulder as her hand moved to the gun that hadn't been entirely crystallized over.

"He's on the outside," Simba said, edging to the window for a better look. "I think twenty yards over and fifteen feet down."

"How did intruders get in here in the first place?" Kida called as tried to stab the spear into Rourke's side with no effect.

"I'm sure Rourke could answer that one, not that I'd expect him to be so obliging," Helga replied, taking the opportunity as Kida thrust her spear to break away. Drawing her gun, she took only split moment to calculate her aim and fired.

The bullet hit the hat. The gunmen looked up to see that he was being fired upon. He pulled his gun to an aiming level and fired before grabbing the bottle and dashed over to cover. "Fabulous company you're keeping these days," Helga muttered as she ducked back, the bullet hitting the edge of the window. She waited half a beat before peering back around to see if she had any kind of decent shot open to her. After all, there was no point in wasting bullets. "Suppose you tell us what the two of you were really doing here?"

"Like I'd want to tell you," Rourke replied as he nailed an elbow against Kida's temple. "I only do what I'm paid to do." He then charged over to ram a shoulder into Helga's stomach.

Helga ducked at the last moment, rolling under his legs and quickly back to her feet. She spun hard with roundhouse kick squarely in his back. "And here I thought you might give us one free for old time's sake," she sneered.

There was then a whistle followed by a gunshot. Rourke leered at the window and growled. "We got what we need!" a voice called. "Let's move!" Rourke glanced at his opponents for a brief moment before grunting and leaping out the window.

"Oh no you don't" Helga growled as she ran to the window and took a few quick pot shots. But it was too late. Rourke was gone and so, apparently, had the gunmen. All the remained was a closing portal that disappeared in the blink of an eye. "Well, that answers one question at least," Helga muttered as she put her gun away. "How is it do you suppose, Simba, that a guild dedicated to 'anti-magic' ideals uses something like that to get around?"

"I'm not sure," Simba sighed. "And their hiring Rourke is a bit strange as well. Something's not right about this group. Hopefully we'll be able to solve this puzzle before its too late."

"Hopefully," Helga muttered glancing at her arm again, "if it's not already too late."

* * *

"You know perfectly well that I don't enjoy having to be ordered around, Rico," Rourke growled. "I could have taken the both of them down and gotten a little payback in the process."

"Yer being paid ta do whatever we say, Rourke," Rico said. "If our best interest lies in extracting energy and leaving without so much as trouble from tha Atlateans, than that's exactly what we are going to do. Even at tha risk of not being able to capture any of the other necessities."

Rourke snorted. "And this is why I don't like dealing with this mystic crap," he muttered.

"Then I guess you don't appreciate being alive," Rico said.

"You want to see how fast as I can jam this into your throat?" Rourke growled as he crystallized his left arm into a long blade. Quite suddenly, the blade exploded. Rourke grunted and held his arm before staring in rage at Rico, who held a smoking rifle in one hand.

"Ya want to see just how much faster I can pull this trigger?" Rico sneered. "Be lucky that one wasn't laced. Because the next one is. Yer beginning to learn just how small you really are in this big world. Now get on standby because we're gonna need you in due time. So don't go away."

Rourke glared as he watched Rico turn and walk away. He took a deep breath and looked down at the shattered pieces of what was his arm. They then began to morph into a liquid state and crawled back into his body, causing his arm to reform. After it was completely materialized, he glared back up at the direction Rico went and walked away.

* * *

It was obvious that noise was not going to wake them up. So Amelia came up with the next best thing as the sun rose above the horizon. She filled up a simple bucket with ice cold water, walked steadily outside, and splashed it hard against the snoring faces of Jack and Silver. She kept a smile on her face as she watched the to struggle, groan and yell upon the water's touch. Her smile widened even more when the two suddenly realized something.

"Wasn't there a great number of barrels here?" Jack asked in confusion.

"This ain't right," Silver said, also in confusion as they looked about their surroundings. "I placed them here meself." They then heard the sudden sound of light laughter. They looked up to see the grinning Captain Amelia standing before them. Silver's eyes lit up in realization. "She took away all me rum!"

"What?" Jack cried. "The rum's gone?"

"Yes, the rum is gone," Amelia replied with a smile.

"Why's me rum gone?" Silver asked.

"Because it is a vile drink that turns even the most respectable men into scoundrels," Amelia replied with a stern look. "And quite frankly, having scoundrels about is the last thing Mrs. Hawkins wants to have her customers see. Not to mention that you should count yourself lucky, Mr. Silver, that this chance at making an honest living has not been wasted so easily and so quickly by your ruffian ways."

Jack and Silver paused for a moment before glancing at one another with raised brows. They turned their gaze back to Amelia, still looking as confused as ever. "... But why's tha rum gone?" they both asked in unison.

Amelia rolled her eyes with disbelief and didn't bother to further explain. Instead, she stormed back into the building and left the both of them in their confusion. Jack and Silver glanced back at one another and shrugged before staggering back to their feet. Silver slowly began to crack the bones in his body while Jack searched helplessly to see if Amelia had forgotten a barrel of rum.

"Oh, me body's been get'in older by tha day, mate," Silver groaned after popping his back. "And it's too early in tha morning ta be awake, that be sure."

"Why tha bloody hell is tha rum gone?" Jack muttered quietly as he paid no attention to Silver.

"Might as well get meself somet'in ta eat," Silver muttered aloud. After the last crack, Silver took in a deep breath and suddenly stopped. He paused for a moment to take a sniff of the air. "Do you smell that, mate?"

Jack stopped what he was doing a took a sniff of his own. "Guess someone's burning something," Jack shrugged and went back to his search. Then he came to a sudden stop with realization. "Burning something like... RUM!"

Jack and Silver began to bolt from their spot, running toward the origin of the fire. They soon found themselves looking at the front of the Benbow Inn where an impromptu barbeque was taking place. A celebration, of sorts, for Jim's return home from the Academy. The two pirates darted their eyes about until they found the fire. It was burning bright, roasting pigs, chicken and other assortments of meat that hung above.

"There you are," Sarah called as she noticed their appearances at the side of the building with a smile. She walked over to them and lightly laughed. "Isn't this wonderful, John? Amelia had this great idea of putting this together. And we need our best chef to make sure everything is cooking properly." She laughed a little more before returning to the guests, leaving the two in their sadness of losing rum over this.

"The Cap'n came up wit this...?" Silver muttered, glancing over to Jack.

"There'll be no living wit her after this, mate..." Jack groaned.

* * *

Bong. Bong. Bong.

Quasimodo wiped the sweat running down his forehead before leaping to the next set of bells that needed to be rung. He was filled with a kind of energy he had never felt before. Last night was nothing short of amazing and breathtaking. He couldn't have felt any happier as he pulled the rope down with strength unlike any he had ever used.

Bong. Bong. Bong.

He leaped down to the main level of the tower, having completed his duties for the time being with a smile on his face. He immediately hopped over to the nearest window and closed his eyes as he felt the wind against his face. And for the first time he left more alive than he had ever been in his life.

Then came a strange rattling sound. Quasimodo quickly turned behind him, but found nothing but an equally strange piece of silk lying on the floor. He raised a brow in curiosity before slowly stepping toward the object. He picked it up lightly to examine it. It was a striking piece of lavender. After looking at it for a moment, he shrugged and carelessly dropped it to the floor. He was about to turn away when then silk suddenly and fluidly grew longer. Red smoke arose from underneath as the silk was drawn back. And standing in place was the striking appearance of a very beautiful woman with a smile upon her face.

He was quite taken aback with awe as the woman spun in place as though she was dancing. She then opened her eyes and looked upon him, her smile widening. "Do you know who I am, Quasimodo?" she asked. Her voice sounded seductive, yet gentle at the same time.

He nodded nervously. "Y-You... you're Esmeralda..." he replied with a whisper.

"Yes," she said, spinning once again as she continued with her dance. "And I have come to seek your help, Quasimodo."

His eyes widened with surprise. "Y-You want... You need my help...?" he asked.

"Your help is much needed, Quasimodo," she said. "The world teeters on the edge of darkness, my friend. And those whom your help would be of great benefit need to find Judge Frollo."

"Frollo...?" he repeated with confusion. Quite suddenly, he realized that all day yesterday and this morning he had forgotten all about him. He didn't even arrive for lunch or dinner. Not even breakfast. This was unlike his master. "I... I haven't seen him... Strange... He usually makes sure I heed his every word."

"Do you have any idea where he might be, Quasimodo?" Esmeralda asked with concern, not missing a beat of her dance.

"Well..." he began to say. "He usually conducts business at the Halls of Justice. He might have occupied himself with much work if that is the case. Why do you wish to seek him?"

"He is of great concern, Quasimodo," Esmeralda said as smoke began to cover her figure. "You have helped us well. We shall be indebted to you. I bid you thanks and farewell." Seconds later, she was completely covered with smoke. Soon, the smoke began to dissolve. And she was gone.

Quasimodo remained in place, completely awed by what he had just experience. He then fell to the ground, losing control over his body before exhaling. What was going on? What was happening? What exactly was his master's role in this? Moments later, he was still unsure about the questions he presented himself. But he remembered that the circus was about to start. In a state of panic, he ran over to grab the nearest cloak and leaped out the window. He climbed down the concrete walls to the streets below.

He took no notice of a pair of glowing red eyes from within the shadows that had watched the entire event transpire.

* * *

to be continued...

Thanks to GoblinQueeen, who provided the dialogue and some action for Helga.


	14. Chapter Fourteen

Dark Storm Dawn

By Lord Akiyama

The follow-up to "Fantasia Crisis"

* * *

Chapter Fourteen 

---

"You make sure you march your butt right back here, Mister," Sarah softly said before finally releasing her embrace upon him. "You have your whole future ahead of you, Jim. I don't want to see it wasted so soon."

"You won't, mom," Jim said with a smile.

"Ah, doncha worry Mrs. Hawkins," Silver chuckled as he patted his more organic hand across Jim's back. "If I know yer Jimbo, he be alright. He got a lot of talent he got."

Jim managed to crack a smile while raising a brow at Silver. "Maybe I should be the one asking you if you'll be alright, mom," Jim said to his mother. "Are you sure you'll be fine with Silver here?"

Sarah giggled and nearly blushed. "I'll be fine, Jim," she said. "Really, I will be."

"I think we better get going immediately, Mr. Hawkins," Amelia said, dragging Jack by the collar as she approached. "If we stay another minute longer, Mr. Sparrow will be destroying your mother's kitchen looking for that disgusting liquid."

"It's not that bad, Cap'n," Silver tried to reason.

"It's bad if it's in the hands of some unruly pirate like yourself and Mr. Sparrow," Amelia glared. "May I remind you of the trouble you caused last night?"

"How much trouble could've we caused?" Jack asked curiously. "We didn't have guns or anything?"

"Whether you two realize it or not, your so-called singing can do just as much damage," Amelia snorted. "Especially in the drunk state you two were last night. Now then, I understand one of the mages will be arriving shortly."

"And one of the mages you'll be getting," a voice spoke. They all turned to see Merlin standing before them. "We might have the location of our attackers, so we better go now so when can put this blasted thing to rest. So, who else is coming along?"

"Just the kid," Aladdin said. "The other two are staying."

"Fair enough," Merlin said, examining Jim before turning his attention to Silver. "I honestly wouldn't know how Helga would feel about him being about considering we got ourselves another helping body into the fold. Now then, I hope you've said your goodbyes boy because this is going to be quite a trip."

---

"Feeling any better, kido?" Chris asked, placing his right hand upon his wife's cheek with a concerned, yet sympathetic grin on his face. His left hand immediately caught both of her hands and held them tight.

"Do I look like I feel any better?" Helga shot back as she tried to pull away.

"I'm sorry," Chris said, quickly glancing one way before refocusing his attention back to her. He knew exactly what he was getting into when he asked her to marry him. "I'm just glad it hasn't gotten any worse."

"Isn't this enough?" Helga stared hard back before dropping her gaze. "I look like some reject from a circus. More than that," she said quietly after taking a breath, "I don't know if I could hurt you or Alexandra. I...I don't know if I could handle that."

Gently, Chris lifted her chin with his fingers so that they were facing eye to eye. "Come on, Helga," he said softly. "Don't think like that. It's not like you one bit. And with they way I've been holding you for the last several minutes, I doubt you're causing me at harm at the moment."

"So that's a reason to keep pressing our luck?" Helga replied with an arched brow. After a brief moment, she sighed and shook her head. "I thought I lost you before and ...well, it wasn't pretty. If something happened now and I was the cause of it...I don't even want to have to think about that."

Chris widened his grin. "Then don't think about it," he said, leaning in and kissing her forehead. "Think about something else. Like caving that conniving bastard's head in for good."

"Sure, cause it worked so well last time," Helga answered him with a roll of her eye.

"And I know you'll do whatever it takes to make sure he stays down this time," Chris chuckled.

"That woman is married?" Kida asked from a distance, shocked and in disbelief at the sight before her. "And a mother?"

"Yep," Simba replied. "I can tell you that she's very protective of them. Would do absolutely anything to make sure she didn't lose them."

"I just don't understand..." Kida muttered quietly, lost in her confusion. Simba took a shrugging sigh and turned back to Merlin and Clopin. The way they were yelling, one didn't need the assistance of echoes to hear what they were arguing about.

"I still think it was a bad idea for you to have left like that!" Merlin yelled.

"Well, pardon me, but if we are to put an end to this we need to start taking action as opposed to waiting for something to happen!" Clopin yelled back.

"Hey! Would you two like to keep it down over there?" Helga bellowed, but not pulling out of her husband's arms. "If they wake up Alexandra, we're going to have two less mouths to feed around here."

"Make that three if I have any say." Everyone turned their attention to the returning Amelia and her crew, one extra body added. And it was quite obvious who she was referring to. "I swear, this ruffian better be worth having around, or I'm going to start dishing out unimaginable pain."

"He offered rum and because yer so concerned wit me mannerisms, I obliged," Jack reasoned.

"And of course, no one would ever want to put _your_ manners in question," Helga sighed.

"If some friendly lad offer ya some rum, you'd do what I did and..." Jack barely got to finish his sentence when he got a good look at Helga. He did a double take to make sure he wasn't that drunk before opening his mouth. "That's interesting."

Amelia and the others immediately identified Helga's change in appearance. "By God, what on Earth happened?" Amelia gasped in surprise.

"It's nothing," Helga muttered, pulling the collar of her trench coat up a little more. "Just ran into an old acquaintance that holds a grudge."

"And it doesn't help that Hercules was also taken by these guys," Mulan sighed.

"Herc was taken?" Aladdin said. "Geez, this is just getting worse and worse. What could happen next?"

"Not all the news is bad," Simba replied. "We were able to figure out who exactly is behind this. A group calling themselves GHOST. And we've got an extra hand," he added, nodding his head in the direction of Kida.

"I thought you were trying to cheer us up..." Helga whispered under her breath.

"I wasn't?" Simba whispered back.

"Well, hopefully our extra hand will help out just as well," Amelia sighed. "I want you all to meet a very good friend of mine, Jim Hawkins." Jim waved nervously at the odd bunch he found himself standing before.

"Like I said, mate," Jack tried to whisper to Jim. "They're a bit eunuch."

"Look who's talking," Helga smirked back.

"Do what?" Jack slurred in confusion.

"One other piece of business happens to be Clopin leaving the mystic plane unprotected," Merlin growled. "I still do not see how this is such a bright idea."

"Well if you actually listened instead of yell, then you would know that it would help us in the right direction in ending this," Clopin argued back. "I have every faith that Esmeralda won't fail it getting us the information we need to find Frollo!"

"Have we tried just looking where we last left him?" Helga said as she folded her arms.

"The problem is where exactly in Paris he is," Clopin said. "He has many bases of operations and we need to be sure of which one we can best find GHOST."

"We could split up and check them all out." Helga suggested. "If nothing else, it would divert their attention."

"Personally, I think it would be in our best interest to find out for sure so that we wouldn't lose any more to these hooligans," Clopin said. "And besides, you said your friend didn't know what kind of changes they made to their ranks. Meaning we don't know how many within Paris are members of GHOST."

"So what are we supposed to do? Just sit around here and wait while they do who knows what to our friends?" Helga spat back.

Just before any responses could be made, purple mist appeared before Clopin. Moments later, they formed a female figure's face. "I've made contact with Quasimodo," the female spoke, her words echoing many times over. "Chances are good that Frollo is basing his operations at the Halls of Justice."

"Would make perfect sense," Clopin said. "Well done, Esmeralda. Now start finding some volunteers and see if you can't infiltrate to see for sure. And be careful."

"Will do," the mist responded. Moments later, the mist disappeared.

"Why don't we just go?" Helga protested. "It's not like I've never done reconnaissance before and besides, then there's a chance I could pay someone back for this little favor," she added, flexing her crystal hand.

"Wouldn't be a bad idea," Simba said. "But like Clopin mentioned, we need to make sure it's the right place. I'll go. Tarzan, you're coming with me." He then looked over at the group with Amelia and took a good look at Jim. "I hope you don't mind if I borrow your friend here."

"Well, Jim my friend," Amelia said, "it seems you'll be doing something sooner than expected."

"Just remember that all I've got is the solar board and one pistol," Jim said in a tone that mixed with nervousness and excitement.

"Hold on, don't think for a second you're leaving me behind to twiddle my thumbs," Helga glared at Simba with a flash of a red eye.

Simba sighed. "Normally I would take you, Helga," he began. "But I think your being in Paris alone would cause some trouble. Not just because of your appearance." He paused for a moment and took a deep breath, hoping what he was about to say next came out right. "And besides... I think you need to spend some time with your family."

Helga remained silent for a moment. It was still new to her, this idea of her loyalties being torn between her family and her duty. "Just promise you'll be careful," she said at last. "And promise me if you run into Rourke, you'll rip a new hole in his throat for me," she added with a slight smile. "Who knows, by the time you get back, maybe I'll have learned to control this thing like he has."

"Deal on both ends," Simba smiled.

---

Quasimodo didn't realize just how fast his was pushing himself, arriving at the circus a good ten minutes before Madellaine was scheduled to perform. Of course, she didn't mind. It gave them just a little more time together before it was time for her part in the act. Once it was showtime, he immediately went to his spot behind the curtain to watch. It was only the second time he watched her perform, but he started to feel that it was becoming a daily chore fore him to go to the circus and watch Madellaine before the crowd.

Moments had passed and the performance was winding down to its big finish when he heard footsteps. Being caught backstage would not be a good thing. Quasimodo immediately looked around and found a shaded area where he could blend in easily and not be seen through the naked eye. Seconds later, two figures and appeared and stopped before the curtain he was just at. They looked nothing like people who would work in the circus.

"That's the girl?" the strange looking creature said. Quasimodo had always felt he was ugly and deformed because of his physical appearance not matching that to what others would normally look. But this one was just out right inhuman. It looked like a giant, talking spider.

"That's her," the other figure said. Now this one looked more like a human being. But for some strange reason, Quasimodo felt this one was just as sinister as the other. This was especially so with the way they spoke to one another. And were they talking about Madellaine?

"Now why would he send us out 'ere and snatch a girl of no importance?" the spider asked with a growl.

"How should I know?" the other replied. "It's not like we know exactly why Frollo wants us to do these things. Just remember that he wants her alive and untouched. Meaning you don't even scratch her, alright."

Quasimodo remained his place, having listened to everything said. Surely they weren't talking about Madellaine. What was so important about her? Was there something that he didn't know that they did? Moments later, he could hear the roar of the crowd. The show was over. And seconds later, Madellaine was going to walk through that curtain. And then he would know for sure if she was their target.

Madellaine took a sigh before emerging through the curtain. Quite suddenly, her mouth was covered and she was being restrained. Quasimodo watched as the spider creature held her as the other figure walked up and examined her. "I have no idea what Frollo wants with you," the human said to her. "But in all honesty, I could care less. As long as I could get paid, I'll make fine sure you're delivered to him in one piece."

Quasimodo watched helplessly as Madellaine desperately tried to cry and free herself to no avail. Her two captors taking her to Frollo as they disappeared out of the circus. He did nothing but hang his head, shedding tears from both eyes. What did Frollo want with Madellaine? What did Madellaine do to deserve this? So many questions riddled his mind. It just didn't make any sense. And he did nothing about it. He was powerless.

_"Do you really think there's more to me than what you see? That I have something else to give?"_

Anger overcame Quasimodo as he lifted his head, facing the direction Madellaine's kidnappers went. He wasn't powerless. And he had much to give.

---

"Nice," Jim commented with a hint of sarcasm as he got a good look at the outfit the gypsies decked Simba in. "Very nice. Maybe I should've taken advantage of the whole 'It's strictly voluntary' portion of the deal."

"Think of it this way, kid," Esmeralda said as they approached the Halls of Justice. "You were asked because you were someone that can be trusted. Not to mention there's probably something about you that presents strength and bravery."

"I think there _is_ something about me that presents both, but I see what you're saying," Jim chuckled.

"This is Halls of Justice?" Tarzan asked as the four came upon the building up close.

"I wouldn't exactly have 'Justice' be used to name this terrible place," Esmeralda sighed as they surveyed their destination. "Many of my people were taken here under false crimes and just for being different. Most never return."

"Quiet, guys," Simba said. "I'm hearing footsteps." The four quickly found a cart for them to hide behind as they watched bodies approaching the building. Three figures, two of them human, one was being held captive.

"I guess the Captain wasn't kidding," Jim whispered. "Scroop is alive."

"One of gunmen," Tarzan noted.

"But what are they doing?" Simba asked.

"I'm not sure," Esmeralda replied. "I've never seen her before." They quieted their whispers as they heard voices emerging from the incoming figures.

"Her kicking and squirming is starting ta piss me off, Gaston!" Scroop yelled. "I'm this close ta cutting one of her feet off!"

"Will you just shut up already!" Gaston snapped back. "And need I remind you that Frollo specifically said he wanted her alive and unscratched! That means her feet are to remain intact, you stupid twit!"

"Well unlike you, I prefer ta know why tha hell this bloody woman is worth our time!" Scroop responded. "She has no affiliation whatsoever to tha twelve nor to tha mages. She's not even one of them bloody gypsies he so despises."

"You're getting paid to do this, Scroop, so why should you complain about some stupid little kidnapping?" Gaston yelled.

"Will the both of you just shut up and get up here now!" a third voice screamed. They turned to see a body hanging out of a window from inside. "The portal does not stay open forever and you know how impatient Frollo is when we take too long to complete seemingly simple tasks!" Simba recognized the figure to be the Yzma woman based on the photograph from the file Helga retrieved.

"Portal?" Simba whispered.

"Good chance its in one of the towers," Jim whispered back. "I say we tail them so that we know for sure where this portal is."

"There's some good and bad to go along with that idea," Esmeralda said. "You definitely will be able to find the portal, thus getting you one step closer to finding the others. But there's a good chance these three aren't the only ones in this place, and this is especially so with some of the other minions Frollo has who round up gypsies."

"Another footstep coming," Tarzan said. The others turned just in time to see something making its way at top speed toward Scroop and Gaston.

"MADELLAINE!" a voice cried. Quite suddenly, a large figure landed and with one right hook knocked Gaston into the wall. The sheer force and strength nearly knocked out the gunman. The figure then turned his attention to Scroop who held the girl in a threatening position. The figure was filled great rage as he breathed heavily and began to circle the giant spider. "Let her go!"

"Quasimodo?" Esmeralda whispered. "What are you doing?" The other three looked at Esmeralda for a minute before looking back at the new figure.

"Lemme tell ya, mate," Scroop growled, keeping the woman held in a dangerous position. "I'm already in a pissed off mood right now. If ya make things any worse than they already, and ya can say bye-bye to this pretty lass of yours."

"Get down, Scroop!" another voice called. Doing as he was told, Scroop pulled the girl down with him and gunfire was sounded. Quasimodo felt the force and took several steps back.

"What the hell are you doing, Rico!" Yzma yelled from the window. "You know you're not supposed to kill him! We need him alive!"

"Calm down, Yzma!" the new figure said, quickly rising from his position of having kneeled on one knee. "We both know nothing I possess would be damaging enough to even scratch him. But can you think of a better way to hold him off so he won't get the girl back."

"Why are you doing this!" Quasimodo screamed. "What is so important about Madellaine that you'd want to kidnap her? What does Frollo have to do with all this?"

"You can ask him yerself when he's ready to speak wit you again, freak," Rico replied, setting up to fire again. "Now be a good lil pawn and let us continue wit our job, or yer gonna be waking up tomorrow wit a huge headache."

"Scroop! Gaston! Move it now!" Yzma yelled. "The portal will be closing shortly and we don't want to have to go through the trouble of opening it again!" Scroop and Gaston did as they were told, slowly making their way past Rico and into the building.

Quasimodo stared at the end of the gun barrel pointed at him for a quick moment before turning his gaze over to Madellaine. He could see the fear in her eyes and tears began to run down her cheeks. Not able to make a sound as her mouth was covered by one of the hands of the Scroop creature. As her body began to disappear into the shadows of the building's interior, the rage built back up and began to make a move. "NOOO!" he screamed as he leaped forward.

Just as Rico pulled the trigger, something slammed into his rifle and forced it to move away from Quasimodo. He kept his grip on the gun, but the discharge was far from being close to connecting with the launching figure. Quasimodo nailed him with a right hand and he was sent sliding against the doorframe. Rico shook himself to remain conscious and looked to see who was responsible for changing the course of fire.

"Are you sure you should've done that?" Jim cried after watching Esmeralda send a rounded disc to keep Rico from firing upon Quasimodo.

"Doesn't matter," Simba said. "They now know we're here and we better move if we're gonna both help save the girl and find this portal before it closes." He turned to Esmeralda before he joined Jim and Tarzan in making their move. "Get Clopin and tell him to prepare to get us out of here." She nodded as she watched them dash toward the building.

"The essentials..." Rico muttered, quickly getting back to his feet. "Yzma, the essentials are here!"

"We don't have time!" Yzma cried back. "The portal is starting to close! You need to get back in here now! We'll deal with them later!" As if on cue, Rico turned and ran as fast as he could into the building.

"NOOO!" Quasimodo cried as he began to chase the gunman. Simba and his group followed as they picked up as much speed as they could running through hallways and up series after series of staircases. Soon enough, the found themselves in what they could only guess would be the top of the tallest tower. Leaping over the final step of the staircase, they were inside a large room with many windows. And at the very far end of the hall was a green portal, slowly beginning to close upon itself.

Fearing their foot speed wasn't enough, Jim quickly threw forward his solar board and surfed his way down the hall. He then slammed the tail end of the board against the back of Scroop, who was yards away from reaching the portal. The impact caused Scroop to drop Madellaine as he flew over her and slid upon the marble floor. See that Gaston would made a go for the girl, Tarzan dashed ahead of the group and swiped Rico at the legs which allowed Quasimodo to collide straight into Gaston. Simba looked around and turned his attention on Yzma, who thought about finishing the job herself until she came face to face with the lion.

Though he could not break away from fighting with Quasimodo, Gaston pulled out a net and tossed it immediately onto Madellaine so that she wouldn't make a quick escape. They all engaged in combat as the portal continued to close. Yzma backed away slowly from Simba before attempting to reach underneath her dress for her knife. But she wasn't fast enough as Simba quickly swiped at her, leaving deep claw marks upon her face. Yzma screamed violently before Simba pounced upon her from behind. She kept her balance long enough to reach the table and grab the nearest object. It was a vile and she smashed it upon Simba's head. Simba made only a minor cry before he fell back and rolled to one side before becoming engulfed in black mist. Yzma, trying to regain her sense of sight, tripped over the smashed remnants of the vile and fell though the closing portal.

Sensing someone would make run in grabbing Simba, Jim used his board as a full force weapon and added extra strength in his kick which sent Scroop across the room. The giant spider slammed hard into Gaston, knocking him into and through the window. The gunman tried to keep his balance and grab something, but gravity won and Gaston fell to his screaming doom below.

Tarzan tried to make a grab at Rico, but only caught his coat. The gunman slipped out of his coat and fired at the jungle man. The special bullets Yzma laced were enough to knock Tarzan unconscious. He quickly grabbed the downed hero, ignoring his own coat, and made a dash for the girl. "Forget the others!" he yelled at Scroop. "Get through the portal now!" He didn't look up to see Scroop displeasure at leaving a fight before leaping into the portal.

"Madellaine!" Quasimodo cried as he made a dash of his own for the trapped girl.

"Quasi!" Madellaine cried, trying to reach out of the net she was caught in. Seconds later, she was picked up by the running gunman. "QUASI!" she cried before Rico leaped through the portal just as it closed upon itself. Within the blink of an eye, they were gone and the portal was no more.

"MADELLAINE!" Quasimodo cried as he leaped over and slammed his huge fists upon the concrete wall that just moments before was where the portal stood. He continued to pound away when Clopin and Esmeralda appeared in the room. The two gypsies watched with horror as the hunchback unleashed anger and sorrow upon the wall before slowly coming up to him. Esmeralda gently laid a hand upon his shoulder as Quasimodo before to give up pounding and dragged himself down to the floor against the wall in tears.

"This doesn't make sense," Clopin finally managed to say moments after watching Quasimodo surrender into his sorrow. "Why in the world would they want the girl?"

"It might have something to do with him," Jim said, nodding his head to the hunchback. "Yzma said something about them needing him alive. What for, we don't know either."

"Just when we think we're getting more pieces to the puzzle, it starts to get bigger," Clopin sighed. Suddenly, his eyes shot open as he began to look around the room. "Where are the others?"

"They got Tarzan," Jim sighed.

"And Simba?" Clopin gasped.

"No, no, they didn't get him," Jim quickly replied. "Yzma hit him with something, but I made sure they didn't grab him. He's right..." He turned to show Clopin where Simba was, only to find himself at a loss of words. The gypsy was just as speechless as he looked upon the sight before him.

The black mist was slowly beginning to clear and it was apparent that the vile had a physical effect upon Simba. They could see that it took away his ability to his use claws and his teeth. Not to mention that it took away his tail.

It was Simba alright, but he wasn't a lion any more. Instead, he was a naked man.

"Uh... guys...?" Simba managed to say. "... little help here...?"

---

to be continued...

Thanks to GoblinQueeen, who provided the dialogue and some action for Helga.


	15. Chapter Fifteen

Dark Storm Dawn

By Lord Akiyama

The follow-up to "Fantasia Crisis"

* * *

Chapter Fifteen 

---

Helga shifted slightly in place for about the tenth time inside of five minutes. Alexandra was nestled in the crook of her right arm and luckily, didn't seem like the movement was disturbing her sleep. The same could probably be said for the husband whose shoulder she was leaning against. By all rights, she should be asleep, too. She hadn't really had a chance to rest since this whole business started, but she wasn't tired at all. Really not at all. She had been tired... before her run in with Rourke, but now she was wide awake and only left to worry about her inabilities as a mother and what was happening to her friends without her.

Moments later, the all too familiar figure of the Queen of Atlantis approached her with hesitance. Kida seemed to appear rather unsure and confused. "Do you mind if I ask you something?" she managed to say.

"Doesn't matter if I do or not, you're going to ask it anyway," Helga muttered in reply.

Kida bit her lower lip, keeping in whatever frustrations she had about the woman before her. "I am curious about... you having a family of your own," she said. "That you have a child of your own to protect."

"And?" Helga arched an eyebrow daringly.

Kida glanced away for a moment, looking for the right words to say. "I was barely old enough to communicate with my mother before our home sunk into the ocean," she said. "And even when I was bonded into the crystal just as she was... I wish to know about how one feels when being a mother."

Helga looked down at Alexandra quietly. She had expected more hostility from the Atlantean and in a way, she would have preferred that. That, she knew how to deal with.

"I don't have any kind of answer to that," she said at last, but with a little less hostility than before. "Ask the Captain over there, she has four of them."

"I have," Kida said nervously. "But... I was hoping to learn more from someone I was a little more familiar with."

"You aren't familiar with me," Helga shot back, her eyes meeting the others with a flash of red.

"Well, unfortunately, I am even for only a little bit," Kida replied with a hint of frustration.

Before anything further could be said, everyone's attention was directed to the returning party. The first to be seen was Clopin. "Well, we've got a lot to report," he sighed. "For one, the Halls of Justice serves as a gateway for GHOST. They're using a portal for some strange reason."

"Where's everyone else?" Helga demanded as she pushed off Chris's shoulder to get her feet. "Where's Simba?"

"Hmmm..." Clopin noted as he looked behind him. "Guess I need to work on that whole teleporting to the mystic plane. The others are coming. Only... we did lose Tarzan in the process."

"What?" Jane cried. "They got Tarzan!"

"Blast it all," Amelia seethed. "We need to end this quickly."

"Won't be that easy, ma'am," Jim said as he finally appeared. "We don't know where they are teleporting from. And they seem to have some interest in a resident."

"A friend of mine by the name of Quasimodo," Clopin said. "We don't know why they need him, but it was important enough to kidnap a girl he fancied."

"Is anyone really surprised at this point?" Helga replied sarcastically. "They've pulled just about every low and underhanded stunt they could think of and so far, all we've managed to do is give them a good laugh."

"We did manage to get rid of one of their gunman," Jim said.

"One less body to worry about," Clopin added. He then noticed that the next body was about to appear and managed a nervous chuckle. "Speaking of having to worry about something... Simba seems to be in a bit of... a predicament..."

"What's wrong with him, what did you do?" Helga growled as she started to move forward.

"It's nothing we did, I swear," Jim said defensively.

"He got into a tussle with Yzma," Clopin said. "Even though he left some lasting scars on her... well... let's just say he... well... won't be able to use his claws or teeth any time soon..."

Moments later, Simba appeared. Only, to the disbelief of everyone else in the room, he wasn't exactly himself. He wasn't a lion any more. He was a human. Wearing only a trench coat and socks.

"Guys..." he managed to say. "... I'm still really cold here..."

For only the second time in her life, Helga was left absolutely speechless. "Si... Simba?" she managed at last.

Simba suddenly began to slip and was immediately caught by the equally shocked Rafiki who took a good look into Simba's face. "Nala's not going ta like dis," he managed to say.

"I doubt she would..." Simba said through the shivering. "Guys, I'm really am cold here. Guess I miss my fur a lot..." Rafiki nodded and began to mutter words that no one could understand. Moments later, more layers of clothing appeared upon the former lion's human body and just underneath the coat.

"Just what the hell happened?" Helga shouted, realizing a second too late that she should have kept her voice down. Alexandra opened her eyes with a plaintive cry as Helga drew her in close, trying to comfort her.

"Well..." Simba began to say, starting to feel a little more warmth. "I was fighting Yzma. I managed to scratch her face. Badly. Was able to pounce her from behind. I guess on instinct she grabbed the nearest thing and smashed it over me. Happened to be a vile that... well... you can figure out the rest."

"And there's more," Clopin sighed. "We took a look at the chemical compositions of the vile and noticed that she laced them with some additional mixtures that would prevent our magic from changing him back. We would need either Yen Sid or find the vile for a lion."

"Of course," Helga sighed as she gently bounced Alexandra. "Why would anything work out in our favor?"

"Well then I guess we don't have much of a choice," Amelia said. "Simba, I suggest we get this over with now and start taking the offensive against them."

"At this point, I'm willing to agree," Simba said. "We just need to figure out how to get the portal opened."

"You know normally, I would agree and I can't even believe myself I am going to object," Helga shook her head, "but just what do you think you are going to be able to do, Simba? You can barely walk let alone fight if it comes down to it and with these people, we know it will. Besides, I don't think we should do this on their terms. If we go through this portal, we could be playing right into their hands. Is there any way we could lure them out into the open? Somewhere that gives us the advantage?"

Simba sighed. "I think that's the thing," he began. "With the way things have been going down, I think they have a good read on what we're doing next. If you noticed, there's been a slowing down of their activities. I think they'll be expecting us to try and lure them out, and I doubt we'll be able to get all of them. Now I know I can barely do anything at this point considering... what just happened. But with the extra help we've got, I think there's a chance we can get them."

"Alright, so we walk straight into the lion's den...no pun intended," Helga nodded. "But you're not going anywhere until I'm sure you can handle yourself, is that understood?" she added with the authoritative air of someone who was used to having her orders followed.

"No problem," Simba chuckled. "I'm sure there's gonna be some time before we figure out how to open the portal."

"Leave that to us," Merlin said. "And we'll bring the extra help in case any of those rascals decide to drop in on us uninvited."

"I'll be staying," Rafiki said with a raised brow that made Simba feel both curious and concerned. "I'm very interested to see Simba act like a human."

"I'm glad the monkey is finding entertainment in all of this," Helga glared back.

"Spend a good week with him," Simba chuckled.

---

"Curiously interesting this portal feels," The Fairy Godmother said as she examined the wall where the portal once appeared. "It's strange to believe that a group of revolutionists committed against all things magic would resort to such to take down Yen Sid and The Twelve."

"A great mystery, indeed," Merlin grunted as he began to visually calculate the mathematics and the magical dimensions of the entrails left behind by the closed portal. "Unfortunately, they're smart enough as to not leave enough clues for us to decipher. They're obviously planning something big."

"Oh, I just have such a bad feeling about all this," Fauna noted as the three fairies floated about examining the wall.

"You always have a bad feeling about everything, Fauna," Merryweather muttered.

"Now, now, girls," Flora said. "We still have a lot of work to do. We need to search deep for the point of origin."

As the mages searched the wall for whatever information they could find about the portal, their guardians sat about the room watching over and prepared for battle should anything happen. At least, that was what everyone was supposed to be doing. Jack Sparrow, on the other hand, was more concerned about finding something to drink.

"Will you give it a rest already?" Peter Pan groaned. "Is there ever going to be a time when you're not drowning yourself in alcohol?"

"I rightfully object to such a statement," Jack slurred as he turned to face Peter for a moment before resuming his search. "I'm not looking for any ol' bottle of alcohol, mate. I'm looking fer some rum."

"I don't think you're gonna find that specific kind of alcohol in here, buddy," Alice said. "If I remember correctly, the most allowed in these kinds of places would be wine and nothing more."

"Wine!" Jack shouted. "What kinda pansies are these people! Wine. That doesn't even resemble an honest drink!"

"Is that all this man ever thinks about?" Kida asked curiously. "This 'rum' he is searching for?"

"In my experience, rum is the official drink for pirates regardless of whatever state they are in," Jim sighed. "It is to them what water is to us. Their essential form of liquid. They kinda go stir-crazy without at least a glass."

"You're kidding me," Peter groaned. "You mean if we want this moron to cooperate properly he needs rum!"

"Not really," Jim replied. "But it would be a good idea if he did get one. Trust me, I've got a pirate working for my mom at the moment. And I have this sudden fear he's flirting with her. ... But what's even scarier is that I think she likes it."

Clopin was the only mage who wasn't actively searching for the portal and its information. His occupation was set upon the hunchback sitting upon the window frame, looking out and about the streets of Paris below. Moments later, Quasimodo sighed and turned to the gypsy. "Whatever it is you guys are involved in, you're taking me along," he said. "I'm going through that portal regardless and getting Madellaine back."

"I wouldn't dream of turning you away, my friend," Clopin said with a bit of a smile on his face. "Welcome aboard."

"Eureka!" Merlin cried. Everyone turned their attention to the hopping wizard as he quickly grabbed his bag and pulled out his wand. "Step back everyone and I'll have this portal opened in no time!

_"Higitus Figitus!"_

---

"Looks like you ladies are ready to go to war or something," Aladdin noted aloud as he watched Amelia and Mulan finish changing into new clothing. He offered a grin as he continued to wipe the cutlass blade in his hand.

"When you think about it, we probably are at war, Aladdin," Amelia said, beginning to check upon the weaponry available to her at the moment.

"Even still, there's definitely gonna be some fighting," Mulan noted as she put the finishing touches to her clothing and began to sift through the weapons. After a moment, she looked over her shoulder with a concerned look as she watched Helga and Chris help Simba adapt to his unfortunate human form. "I sure hope he'll do alright."

Amelia and Aladdin took a moment to glance over as well to see how Simba was fairing. "He's been the heart of the group, that's for sure," Amelia noted. "We're going to need him in the long run."

"For someone who's never been a human, you sure do have a lot of these traits down pretty fast," Chris noted with a grin.

"Pretty fast isn't good enough," Helga replied dryly. "You can't stake your life on 'pretty fast'."

Chris shrugged. "Well, you can't learn them all on the first try," he said.

"Especially when you've spent all your life on four legs," Simba added with a nervous chuckle before pushing himself back to his feet. He took a deep breath. "Okay, I'm ready to try again."

"Try?" Helga arched an eyebrow at him. "You either do or you don't, there's no such thing as try."

"Because there's no second chance in real life," Chris added.

"Most of the time," Helga glanced at him with a slight smirk before turning back to Simba. "So," she said as she placed her hands on her hips, "are you ready to pound my husband into the ground?"

Simba took another deep breath after digesting everything they said. "Hakuna Matata..." he quietly whispered before he dashed forward.

Chris swung his right arm, Simba ducking fast and strafing to the left. Chris responded by reversing the swing. Simba leaned back to dodge the attack. He then lunged forward and slammed his head against Chris' forehead. Chris doubled back before throwing an under hook jab with his left. Simba was able to move his body just in time, but not fast enough to avoid a swinging reverse roundhouse right kick that sent him to the ground.

"If you can't dodge an attack, you need to block it," Chris said, rubbing his fingers against the spot on his forehead Simba head butted him.

"And pay more attention to what your opponent is doing," Helga sighed as she offered a hand to help Simba up. "Don't let them get you into a corner where you have no where to go. Fighting is like playing chess. You have to be thinking at least 10 moves ahead."

"Um, okay..." Simba said through the increase of his breathing following the spar. Once he was back to his feet, he could hear the familiar chuckles of Rafiki just behind Helga. Simba gave off an embarrassed smile as the monkey shaman watched on.

"Very quick Simba does learn," Rafiki explained to Alexandra. The giggling infant sitting comfortably in the makeshift crib conjured by The Fairy Godmother. "Hits to the head sometimes it takes," he added with an audible whisper.

"Oh good, then he must be a genius by now," Helga smirked. "You been keeping score, Chris?"

"Five so far," Chris chuckled. "He definitely has this down a lot better than the average newbie, I'll give him that."

"Average is something I don't think any of us could be called," Helga shot back.

"I was referring to those we got stuck with back in Manila," Chris responded.

"Those weren't even average," Helga sneered. "They could barely take a punch."

Overhearing every word, Amelia and Mulan couldn't help but quietly laugh. "You should've seen me the first few days," Mulan said to Amelia. "I barely had any strength in my punches. I literally hit like a girl."

"I knew a couple lads who wet themselves the second they saw our combat teacher run down the basics," Amelia said. "We convinced him to save kicks for later."

"Wimps," Helga muttered rolling her eyes. "I've been fighting my whole life, since I was 4. Mother wanted me to go into dance, but that didn't seem like as much fun. A lot of the boys I challenged thought it was a joke, but as soon as they were getting their face ground into the dirt, they changed their mind. Not one of them were able to keep me down..." she paused for a moment as she thought back over the past, "not till I was seventeen at least."

"Hey, at least you knew what you wanted to be that early in your life," Mulan said. "I was still trying to figure out who I was when father was called to duty. He was crippled and he would've died for certain. I had to do something, even it meant sneaking out into the night without my parents knowing."

"Runs in the family for me," Amelia said. "My father, god rest his soul, taught me a lot before I decided Navy life really was for me. A lot of expectations I had to live up to, especially with how important my father was when he was active."

"Perhaps when we're done with all this chitter chatter, we can get this whole thing over with." They turned to see Merlin and the three fairies appear. "We're gonna be needing you to take these fine ladies' places, Rafiki. We're ready to open the portal."

Helga looked at Simba. "Question is if we're ready," she said quietly.

"I am," Simba said after a deep breath.

"Great, then let's get moving," Chris said, giving his arms one last stretch.

"You sound like we're going to a tea-party," Helga glared at him before checking her gun and pulling on her coat.

"Hmmm..." Chris muttered. "How about, 'I've waited in this mystic realm long enough and ready to kick some ass'?"

"Now there's the punching bag mentality I fell in love with," Helga shook her head.

---

Everyone took one good look at the portal before taking deep breaths. Simba was the first to take a step forward before everyone else began to make their move into wherever they were going. "Remember," Clopin called as they all began to step through. "You have six hours, or you'll be stuck there for another thirty-eight before we have regained enough power to open the portal again."

"But no pressure or anything," Helga muttered as she followed Simba.

Moments later, they left the mages behind and were on the other side of the portal. It had a similar quality to the mystic realm, but there were noticeable differences such as the glass floor they were stepping upon. Not to mention the voices they could hear.

"Frollo, we have intruders!" It was the familiar voice of Yzma that echoed through the nothingness.

"This is quite unexpected," Frollo's voiced responded in echo. "I will have to deal with you shortly, my dear. I have friends I must take of first."

Quite suddenly, the floor below them broke apart into moving platforms. Before they knew it, the group was getting split up. One platform had Helga, Chris and Kida. Another had Amelia, Jim and Jack. The third had Aladdin and Peter. The fourth had Simba, Mulan and Alice. Quasimodo was all alone on the last platform.

"I think someone left us a welcome wagon," Helga whispered with a low growl in her voice as she adjusted the grip on her gun.

"I wouldn't exactly call it a wagon," an all too familiar voice said. The three turned to see Rourke in a crouching position with a grin. He was completely crystallized with various forms of crystals seeming to have emerged from his husking form.

"You're right, I have several other choice words to describe you," Helga hissed as she placed herself between him and Chris.

"You had such a way with flattery, Helga," Rourke chuckled. "It's too bad things had to be the way they are. But enough regressing about the past. Let's put an end to this once and for all." He slammed his fists into the ground and a crystals began running down toward the trio.

"Get back!" Helga shouted as she pushed Chris out of the way. She looked up briefly to make sure Kida had gotten out of the way, too, before holstering her gun. After all, it wasn't going to do her any good in this fight. "This is between you and me, Rourke," she called back as she got to her feet, letting her coat drop to the glass floor. "Leave them out of it and you can have your little fight to the death."

"Who said anything about me wanting to kill you," Rourke said. "The trio of terror need you alive for their little experiment. Besides, why would I pass up the opportunity to kill your husband?"

"Well, if you're so hell-bent on killing me Rourke," Chris sneered as he whipped out his gun, "we'll just have to make sure you don't get any free shots."

"What in tha hell have they done ta me ship!" Jack Sparrow yelled. Amelia and Jim turned to see the pirate's attention completely focused on a pirate ship. Outfitted with some interesting upgrades. The kind that a pirate of his era would most definitely not appreciate in a heartbeat.

"Well, that's one way to getting around from one end of the spectrum to the next," Jim noted. Seconds later, an explosion nearly missed the trio by half a foot. The looked up upon the ship's deck to see Scroop with a projectile weapon.

"I can assure ye, cabin boy," the spider began to sneer in his raspy voice, "that ye be pulling any of yer tricks around here. Yer in my arena and everything always ends in my favor!"

"We'll see about that, Scroop," Amelia said as he withdrew her cutlass. "This may be your arena, but that far from gives you the advantage you think you have."

"As much as I marvel in yer enlightenment, Captain," Scroop chuckled, "I doubt it will do ye any good against me newly acquired weaponry." The ship began to dip just enough for the others to take a good look at the vast amount of weapons the spider had at his disposal.

"I want me ship back, ye bleeding son of a whore!" Jack cried as he withdrew his sword and made a mad dash toward the ship. Scroop immediately began to fire upon him, but the mixture of speed and absolute blind luck allowed Jack to get close enough to grab a rope, cut the parallel, and launch himself onto the ship's deck.

"And just who in tha devil are ye supposed ta be?" Scroop sneered as he grabbed two blades of his own and prepared to duel with the intruder.

"Tha one and only, mate," Jack grinned. "I'm Captain Jack Sparrow."

Aladdin and Peter dashed toward separate directions as they avoided the gunfire. Peter immediately took flight, but quickly found himself at a bit of a disadvantage. The gunfire just became faster and harder as he tried to approach the gunman closer. He soon found himself backing off and finding cover.

"Now ya see, boy?" Rico laughed as he dropped the current rifle and picked up the next with ferocious pace. "You may have all them fancy magic, but it's nothing compared to tha might of a good ol' fashion gun!"

"Good ol' fashion, eh," Aladdin muttered as he surveyed his surroundings and found a pillar to his left. He studied everything before he began to make his move. "This is what good ol' fashion looks like."

Aladdin made a dash to the pillar and began to run up it, making sure his speed was enough to bypass the incoming fire from Rico's cannons. Making it to as far high as he could run up, he flipped off toward the gunman and twisted his body in mid-air so as to face the opposing man. Rico fired, but Aladdin successfully deflected each shot with his sword. Upon landing, he dashed and thrust his sword forward.

Rico dropped his gun and dodged the attack. He rolled back and picked up another rifle in the process. He immediately brought his rifle up to block the sword attack. Rico then used the butt of the rifle and rammed it against Aladdin's face, causing the other to stumble and roll back. The gunman positioned himself and continued to fire.

"You've got skill, I'll give ya that," Rico said with a cackle of a laugh. "But yer still not good enough against me." He locked and loaded his weapon and continued to fire upon the heroes, causing them to duck for cover once more. He laughed with each shot as he had all the time in the world to defend himself.

Make-shift bombs were tossed and exploded about Simba, Mulan and Alice as they did whatever they could to dodge the in coming attacks. They looked up to see a deeply scared and enraged Yzma tossing the potions left and right.

"You truly are a trouble maker, Simba!" the old woman cried. "You have the heart, the soul and the will to enforce what is good in this world. You're just lucky I took you for granted, otherwise you would've been far worse than a human."

"You mean something as wrinkled as you?" Mulan remarked as she easily dodged the attacks.

"Oh, that does it!" Yzma yelled, putting a stop to dropping the potions upon the opposition. "You can mock me all you want, child. But it will be nothing compared to the pain and sorrow you are about to feel." She brought two fingers up to her lips and began to whistle. "Say hello to your doom!"

The sound of a horse's cry was heard in the distance. The trio turned just in time to be pushed back by the charging black beast. They immediately jumped back to their feet as Mulan withdrew her sword and Alice pulled out her knife and tossed it to Simba.

"You're probably gonna be needing that more than me," she said as she pulled out her Ice Staff.

The three looked back and prepared to defend themselves against the latest opposition. The mounted figure pulled out a sword of its own as the horse charged toward them. Mulan swung her sword, but it was blocked by the figure's. The force of the block was enough to push her down to the ground with a grunt. And she looked in horror as the blade began to dissolve into ash.

Bewildered with disbelief, the trio looked up as they were able to get a better view of what they were up against.

Cloaked and draped in black, it was a horseman without a head.

---

to be continued...

Thanks to GoblinQueeen, who provided the dialogue and some action for Helga.


	16. Chapter Sixteen

Dark Storm Dawn

By Lord Akiyama

The follow-up to "Fantasia Crisis"

* * *

Chapter Sixteen

---

Qusimodo crept as quietly as he could while moving forward. The platform he was on that separated him from the rest led him to an unusual looking architecture. It had similarities to Notre Dame, but it appeared more ancient. Regardless, his mind was focused on finding and rescuing Madellaine. And he knew that it may include having to cause physical harm to a man who raised him since infancy. It took some time before he finally reached a room with a lot of open space.

Within, he noticed many faces strapped to wooden slabs. They were unconscious. Only one of the faces he recognized as one of the people who helped him back at the Halls of Justice. The others he didn't know. The sound of violent coughing caught his attention and he turned to see a sweating Frollo leaning against a doorway. For a moment, he could've sworn Frollo was trying to laugh. Yet he appeared far too weak to do anything other than cough. Not wasting a sec, Quasimodo dashed over to the old man. With one swoop, he lifted Frollo in the air by the collar with all every bit of rage and anger in his body.

"Where is she?" Quasimodo demanded. "Where is Madellaine?"

"Temper, temper..." Frollo managed to mutter in a raspy tone, followed by a cough. He clearly had little strength to speak, but spoke any way. "Your precious Madellaine is quite safe..."

"WHERE?!" The fire burning in Quasimodo's eyes were as evident as could be. Even still, Frollo tried to laugh only to muster a cough.

"Right above..." Frollo said, pointing upward with his shivering finger.

Quasimodo glanced up. The ceiling to this room was very high up. Higher than even the main base of the cathedral in Notre Dame. Yet he could still make out the figure of Madellaine at the very top. She appeared attached to some glowing object, unable to move. She made no noise, either because she wasn't conscious or something else was preventing her from raising her voice.

"I have no real use for her..." Frollo said, trying to manage a grin. "Take her, if you wish..."

Quasimodo glared at Frollo once more before dropping him to the ground. He didn't brother to do so gently. He then looked around to figure out how to reach her. There were many wooden beams above. The question was how many were there and if there were enough for him to make it all the way to the top. He felt he was wasting time and had to rescue her now. With a deep breath, he scaled the walls and made his ascent to Madellaine.

---

"I'm not gonna take yer insolence sittin' down!" Scroop yelled, swinging both swords madly at his opponent. Jack ducked the first and blocked the other with a grin.

"Yer hemorrhoids are flarin' up again, eh?" Jack laughed. With his free hand, he landed a punch on the spider's jaw. Scroop grawled in anger and proceeded to chase him.

"Where did you find this guy again?" Jim asked Amelia as they made their way forward upon the ship to join in on the fight.

"I didn't ask and I'd rather not know, Mr. Hawkins," Amelia replied. They scaled the ropes leading to the deck and watched as the fight began to move about all over the ship. "Though I wonder how in the world he managed to be a captain."

"Only once have I met such a coward!" Scroop yelled as he followed Jack up into the sails.

"He musta taught ya everythin' ya know," Jack taunted some more. He lifted his legs up in time to avoid getting nipped by one of Scroop's swords and continued to lead his opponent upward. They were soon clashing swords upon the highest mast while Jim and Amelia continued their attempt to catch up.

Scroop formed a smirk as he began to edge Jack closer and closer to the end of the mast. "Yer no match fer me brains, ya poor fool," he chuckled.

"I'd be in real trouble if ya ever used 'em," Jack responded. As Scroop lunged both swords forward, Jack leapt off the mast and caught a nearby rope. His weight on the rope caused it to be pulled down, bringing up the sails. Scroop screamed in frustration as his opponent once again avoided certain death.

Jim and Amelia watched as Scroop leaped after, grabbing another rope that would bring up the sails. Jim and Amelia looked down to notice that they were occupying space the sails would move up through. "Bloody pirates!" Amelia managed to mutter under her breath before she joined Jim in leaping onto the moving sails.

Scroop landed the bow of the ship where Jack waited patiently. They resumed their fight and clashed swords every second. "Soon ye'll be wearin' me sword like a shish kebab!" Scroop growled as their fight moved toward the ship's deck.

"First ya better stop waivin' it like a feather-duster," Jack responded.

Climbing onto the mast, Jim and Amelia watched below as Jack and Scoop continued their fight. They then withdrew their swords and scaled down ropes by their respective selves. Jack managed to catch a glimpse of the two moving downward and then quickly looked about his surroundings. Something caught his eye, resulting in a smirk coming upon his face. He hopped back and took a bow. Scroop charged forward, only to be met by Jim and Amelia dropping down before him.

Scroop was starting to lose all focus and patience as he found himself in a two-on-one predicament. He snarled and growled louder and louder with clash of swords. Jim and Amelia circled him slowly as he was given no chance to find an opening against either one and escape being trapped. It was not long before he was disarmed, the first sword by Amelia and the second by Jim.

"I will milk every drop of blood from yer bodies!" Scroop screamed in malevolent anger. He then suddenly gasped at the twitch of pain. He looked down to see a sword sticking out of his chest.

"How appropriate," said his killer from behind. Scroop turned to see a pistol aimed between the eyes. Holding the pistol was a smiling Jack Sparrow. "Ya fight like a cow." Jack pulled the trigger. Scroop dropped dead instantly.

Jack blew at the end of the pistol, turned and walked toward the wheel of the ship. Amelia and Jim looked down at Scroop's lifeless body for a moment before look at Jack. "You don't suppose he planned this fight, do you?" Jim asked curiously.

"Ya know, actually I did," Jack replied in a sarcastic tone of surprise. "Now if ya don't mind, get tha hell off me ship!"

He grabbed the ship's wheel and began to turn. Or rather he tried to, but it wouldn't budge. He increased his strength to get it moving, only to find himself out of luck. Refusing to give up, he struggled with all his might to get the wheel to move. In the end, it proved useless as he found himself falling flat on his back. Jim and Amelia found the sight amusing.

"Care to hear my opinion on your current situation, Mr. Sparrow?" Amelia called out.

Jack stood up, fuming with frustration and humiliation at the wheel before giving a heavy sigh. "Ya seem ta have an idea as to what tha bloody hell happened ta me ship," he finally said.

"Possibly," Amelia said, doing her best to suppress laughter. "Allow us a little time with the ship to retrieve our fellow comrades and we'll stabilize this ocean greyhound so that you may be on your way."

Jack snorted in anger. After a moment's thought, he turned to Jim and Amelia. "Anythin' ya break, yer payin' fer," Jack said in defeat.

---

Rourke dug his crystallized arms into the ground. The result was eruptions of various crystal-based spikes shooting from the ground at a rapid rate. It forced Helga, Chris and Kida to always be moving as he clearly wasn't making things any easy for them to even make their attack.

"Great move giving the power hungry mercenary super human powers," Helga shouted at Kida as she dove out of the way of an emerging crystal.

"Well I didn't participate in the actions that led to my becoming one with the crystal and thus turning him into the being he is now," Kida shouted back with as much anger, dodging the emerging crystal with as much quickness as possible.

"If you ladies don't mind setting aside the blame game and just try to take him out," Chris called, able to fire another shot or two from his gun while trying to roll out of the spikes at the last second.

"I know someone who's sleeping on the couch," Helga grumbled under her breath. More than ever, she wished she knew how Rourke was controling that energy, but if he needed her alive, that also meant she had the best chance of being able to get close to him. She waited a few seconds until it looked like his attention was on the crystal spikes he was creating before dodging her way through, launching a flying kick right at his head.

Rouke just looked at her with a grin. "Like that will have any effect on me any more," he chuckled. The kick didn't do so much as a scratch as he grabbed her ankle and threw her down. "Now to make sure you don't try anything funny again..." He held on to her ankle and the crystal began to form over her body. Moments later Helga was encased in a crystal prison up to her neck.

Helga strained against the pressure encasing her body, letting slip a few colorfully descriptive phrases in Rourke's direction as she did so. She couldn't let him win, she had too much at stake this time.

Just then, a piece of Rouke's left should was shattered. He looked completely unconcerned before turning his attention to the shooter.

"I don't appreciate any one trying to cause any sort of physical harm to my wife," Chris said. "Even if that any one is you, Rourke."

Rouke chuckled as the piece of his shoulder reformed through crystalization. "Well, I've waited a long while for the perfect opportunity to kill you," he said. "Thanks for making this personal." He began to charge at Chris.

"No!" Helga shouted as she threw everything she had left into trying to break free of the crystal holding her back. If Rourke could do it, there had to be a way...

Chris fired a couple rounds without moving. Just as it seemed Rouke was about to be on top of him, Kida slid in and struck with her spear. Chris rolled to the left and fired again. They were hitting Rourke's arms to prevent him from striking back and were taking turns rapidly.

Helga closed her eyes as she tried to focus her energy. He need her...their child needed her...she had to find a way...

With a sudden chill, she felt her right arm twitch as a strange current ran through. All in the same instant, the crystal around her began to crack and without wasting a moment, she pushed her way through the debris. Her right eye flashed red as her arm melted into a blade.

"All this time, and you still can't pick on people your own size," she muttered, using the opportunity as he was distracted to plunge the blade deep into Rourke's back.

For the first time in a long while, Rouke felt pain. He turned to see Helga having used her new found powers upon him. "Nothing ever goes right," he muttered before swinging his right arm to throw her off.

Helga pulled her arm free and rolled out of the way. What ever this energy was, it had taken a lot out of her. Her response time was slowing, she could tell that much, she only hoped Rourke couldn't. "Maybe if you weren't such a greedy snake they'd work out better, hmm?" she taunted as she moved to block the blow she knew would be coming.

"Oh, you've really gotten under my skin these past several meetings, Helga," Rourke said through clenched teeth as he began to slam his fists against her block. "If I wasn't paid to keep you alive, you'd be dead by now." Each blow was coming harder and harder.

"Funny, I thought I got under your skin a long time before that," Helga growled back as she felt the stregnth in her arm slip further and further with each crushing blow. "In that case, here's something to remember me by," she hissed as she latched onto his arms with her free hand drove her foot into his gut, flipping them both across the glass floor.

Rourke grew more frustrated as he quickly grabbed her by the neck and held her hard against he floor. "I'm sure the boss won't mind if I bring you back lacking oxygen," he said as he began to create a crystallized prison that would encase Helga's head. He only got to her chin when something was jammed into his forehead.

The sudden halt caught her off guard and Helga looked up to see the Atlantean woman above them with her crystal shoved directly into Rourke's forehead.

The crystal remained in his forehead as Rourke began to move. But his movement was getting slower. And he was clearly in great pain, unable to raise his voice. He was looking to grab the crystal when he completely froze in place.

Helga ripped the crystal from her neck as she staggered to her feet. She lurched forward, her breath a little halting as she wrapped her fingers around the hulking crystal's neck. "Nothing personal," she hissed through clenched teeth as she plunged her blade-like arm into his stomach with an upward thrust.

Upon impact, the frozen form of Rourke shattered and caused Helga to fall back. The shattered pieces of Rourke then began to halt in mid-air. Moments later, they were being absorbed into Kida's crystal as it began to glow brighter. Chris immediately began to run over to his wife. He held up her upper body and began to notice something, causing him to crack a smile.

Helga was only dimly aware of Chris's presence as he lifted her up, her energy gone. "Is it over?" she muttered as she tried to focus.

"Yep," Chris replied in that optimistic tone of his. He then took her right hand and raised it up for her to see.

It took her a moment in her dazed state to realize what she was looking at, but after a few seconds, Helga's eyes grew wide in amazement as what she was left staring at was not the blue tinted stone she had become accustomed to, but her own flesh. "Chris..." she breathed hardly daring to trust her own eyes. "Is this..."

Chris gently brought her hand up to his lips for a kiss. "Yep," he said in reply to her unfinished question.

"And I'm..." she started again in the same breathless tone.

This time, Chris gently kissed her lips. "Yep," he replied once more.

Helga let her hands twine around his neck as she pulled him so that her lips were again pressed against his.

"Ahem..." Kida said rather shyly as she regained possession of her crystal. "Um... I believe we should be helping the others."

"I thought I was helping," Helga smirked at Chris.

"You are, kido," Chris chuckled. "Just in your own way."

"I do what I can," Helga smiled devilishly as she brought her lips to his yet again.

---

Rico pulled the trigger. Another pillar began to crumble upon impact. Peter Pan and Aladdin knew that they were running out of places to cover behind. Each shot he fired took out whatever pillar or barrel or block they needed. If the rate continued, they would be sitting ducks in a matter of minutes. They had to act fast and now.

"That Jim kid didn't really have time to teach me about how to ride that board of his," Aladdin said as he hopped on Peter's back. "But I have a feeling it's very similar to riding a flying carpet."

"Let's just hope you're not heavier than you say you are," Peter grunted as he began to take flight. "Otherwise we're gonna be scraping the ground very shortly." Peter began to charge ahead with Aladdin positioning himself in a surfing position.

"Well now, what have we here?" Rico chucked. "Looks like you boys are tired of playing chicken and want to start acting like bulls. My kinda hunt."

Rico began to open fire. Peter would be forced to dodge any and all attacks just as his opponent pulled the trigger. Aladdin had to hold his balance if he was going to be able to stay on Peter's back and make a successful charge at Rico. His blade was exposed in case Peter couldn't move fast enough and needed to deflect any in coming shots.

Peter was dodging the shots quick enough until they were getting closer to Rico. Aladdin then did most of the work deflecting the shots. To successfully take down Rico, they had to time everything right. More importantly, they had to time Aladdin being able to strike the opponent when he is open. And Rico wasn't one to leave any sort of opening recognizable to the naked eye.

The second Rico pulled the trigger, Aladdin took the chance and leaped forward. He swung his sword to deflect the shot and swung again, hoping this strike would connect. Rico slid under, lifting himself to his knee behind the still airborne Aladdin with a grin.

"Nice try," Rico chuckled before firing.

---

The Jabberwock's Eyestaff proved to be the one weapon to take on whatever supernatural powers the Headless Horseman possessed. It did not dissolve at the touch of his blade, that much it could do. However, all of the powers it possessed couldn't even keep the opponent down. Alice determined that the best course of action was for her to keep the Horseman at bay while the others dealt with Yzma. Putting all their focus on the Horseman would just waste time.

"Figure out how she summoned this thing and try to reverse it," Alice said in-between grunts while blocking the Horseman's attacks with the Eyestaff. "If you have a better idea, I'm all ears."

"Come on, Simba," Mulan said, tugging the collar of her lion-turned-human companion. "We gotta move!"

Simba had trouble adjusting to running on human legs before he managed to be in step with Mulan and hustle with her away from the fight. Their attention was now set upon Yzma. Their scarred foe standing upon her elevated platform with a snear upon her face, raising in one hand a make-shift bomb in the guise of a potion flask.

"Ah, how shall I do it?" Yzma asked herself aloud. "How shall I kill Simba when the master is through with him?" She launched the flask toward her opponents and picked up another with a free hand.

Mulan and Simba dodged the attack by side-stepping in opposite directions. "Question now is how do we reach her," Mulan said. "Nothing that I can see that we can use to move ourselves upward."

Simba studied the platform Yzma stood on as quickly as he could. An old vision began to pass through his own eyes and a crazy idea came to his head. He sighed and turned to Mulan. "We need to bring Alice and the Horseman over here to distract her view."

"What for?" Mulan asked curiously.

"So that she won't see me scaling the platform once you launch me as far up as you can," Simba replied.

"That's a flat surface you're planning to climb on, Simba," Mulan noted. "And you're in human form."

"You let me worry about the actual climbing," Simba said. "Just get her distracted so I'm not an easy target for her to hit, okay?"

"You got it," Mulan said as she turned and went off to fetch Alice and the Horseman.

"Oh, I know," Yzma said as she launched another flask at Simba. "I'll turn him into a flea. A harmless, little flea."

"Talking to herself like that, it probably won't be that hard to keep her distracted," Simba muttered quietly to himself. After dodging another attack, he turned to see Mulan and Alice leading on the Horseman toward his direction.

"Hope you know what you're doing, Simba," Alice said as she got closer to him while blocking one of the Horseman's attacks.

"Last chance to think of another plan," Mulan said, preparing herself to launch Simba.

"It's all or nothing," Simba said as he quickly placed a foot on Mulan's hands. Seconds later, he was being lifted up and into the air.

It was about as far up on the platform as he could get given his being in a human body. He clutched the surface with his palms with all his strength as he began to slowly slide down. He gritted his teeth before coming to a stop. Though he had the body of a human, his nails were as tough as a lion. He took a deep breath and began to slowly scale the surface.

"And then I'll put that flea in a box," Yzma continued in talking to herself, watching the Horseman do battle with Alice and Mulan while she herself launched flasks upon them. And then I'll put that box inside of another box. And then I'll mail that box to myself."

The Horseman began to intensify his sword swings, forcing Alice to grip the Eyestaff harder with each clash. Mulan tried the hit and run method in landing a stab into the headless foe and then swiftly moving out of his line of attack. The Horseman instensifying his attack made it harder for her to judge when to attempt another strike. She almost mistimed herself when the tip of his sword managed to scar her left cheek. Despite how light the scar was, the burning caused pain the likes she had never felt.

"And when it arrives..." Yzma continued, turning away from the battle below in egotistical confidence and laughter. "I'll smash it with a hammer! It's brilliant, brilliant, brilliant, I tell you! Genius, I say!" In her excited laughter, she knocked over a flask that instantly broke upon hitting the surface. She turned to see the lion-turned-human Simba side-stepping the spot where the contents of the broken flask was. "Or, to save on postage, I'll just burn him with acid."

Yzma quickly turned to grab the nearest flask while Simba had only seconds to leap over and pounce her. Even in human form, he was swift and percise. In knocking her down, he noticed an object rolling away from her. He looked up and noticed a skull. He thought for a mere moment and when the idea came to his head. He immediately grabbed the skull and ran over to the edge to see the fight below.

"Horseman!" Simba cried. The headless foe responded with a body movement that mimicked that of someone looking up. Simba tossed down the skull to the figure just as a flask connected against his back. He left out a yelp just before being covered in smoke and falling off the platform.

"Simba!" Mulan cried. She quickly rushed to Alice's side as they positioned themselves to catch their falling comrade, paying no attention the Horseman retreiving his skull. The smoking heap landed heavily upon the two women, forcing them to lose their balance and drop to the ground. "Simba!" Mulan cried once more as she and Alice began to wave as much of the smoke off of him as possible. Moments later, his body began to stir and cough.

"Thanks," Simba managed to say in-between coughs. Once the smoke had properly cleared he took a deep breath and looked down. He noticed that he was standing all fours. All four of his paws. He examined himself as much as he could and gave a sigh of relief. He was a lion again.

"Curses!" Yzma cried from the platform above. She gave a snarl as she grabbed a pair of flasks and prepared to drop them upon her opponents below. "You won't be lucky this time! I've got you..." As her voice began to trail, her emotional state shifted as well. Going for anger and frustration to dread and fear.

Simba and the women took notice and turned toward the Horseman. No longer was he headless. Rather perched on the horse was a hooded figure with glowing red eyes. The Horseman stared at the trio for only a moment before turning his attention to Yzma. With both heels, he kicked the sides of the horse. It gave out a cry before launching itself and its master into the air and perfectly upon the platform. Yzma stood perfectly still, eyes widened in sheer horror and dropping the flasks. The Horseman quickly grabbed her before the contents could make any effect.

Laughter began to echo all around. It was quite apparent it was coming from the Horseman. Smoke then began to engulf him and Yzma, causing the other to scream in great terror. Moments later, both the laughter and the scream died. The smoke disappeared and nothing remained in their place. Simba and the women sighed as this battle came to a close.

"Well, that was something," Alice managed to say, breaking the silence.

"You're telling me," Mulan said. She then looked over at Simba and couldn't help herself from giggling.

"What?" Simba asked curiously.

"You're still wearing clothes," she replied.

Simba looked at himself and realized she was right. Rather certain areas of his clothing were ripped, he was still wearing them. He couldn't help but chuckle along. Alice contributed to their enjoyment by forming a smirk on her face.

"Guess I'm a little too big to fit in these," Simba said.

---

to be continued...

Thanks to GoblinQueeen, who provided the dialogue and some action for Helga.


	17. Chapter Seventeen

Dark Storm Dawn

By Lord Akiyama

The follow-up to "Fantasia Crisis"

* * *

Chapter Seventeen

"Now what was it I was suckered into doin' again?" Jack Sparrow thought aloud to himself from the ship's wheel, watching as the next batch of Amelia and Jim's comrades boarded.

It took several tugs before Mulan was finally able to get the ripped shirt off of Simba. "Well," Mulan said shortly thereafter, "at least we won't have to worry about this being reused anytime soon."

"Who's driving this thing?" Helga grumbled as she hoisted herself over the railing. "I thought we were going to have to walk out of here..."

"That would be Mr. Sparrow turning the wheel, Ms. Sinclair," Amelia replied. "Although there have been some technological advancements made to the ship that has made it difficult for him to have just flown off on his own, so Mr. Hawkins is down below operating ship's functions. Fortunately, we'll be able to use this ship to get out of here when we need to."

"And once we do, yer all gonna fix me ship and then get tha bloody hell off!" Jack yelled from his place.

"What? And leave such charming company?" Helga smirked before catching sight of Simba. "Decided to go back to the fur coat look?"

"And I see you're back to your old self again, too," Simba chuckled. He wiggled himself a bit as Mulan struggled to get the ripped pants off of him. "Only difference is you don't have to go though the same problem I am."

"Yeah, well you didn't have to chip pieces off of you, either," Helga retorted.

"I thought the tender kiss of your Prince Charming healed everything up," Chris smirked with an arm around her shoulders.

"Really, he's here?" Helga feigned ignorance as she looked around.

Just then, Peter Pan flew up into their view. "Found you guys," he sighed with relief.

"Hey! We were supposed to find you," Jack snorted.

"Well, you're doing a very good job at it, Mr. Captain Jack Sparrow," Peter retorted. "If you'd been a little faster, Aladdin wouldn't have been taken."

"Maybe ya should stop 'bein' a boy' and actually do somethin' ta have prevented it," Jack yelled back.

"Slacker!"

"Loser!"

"Ruffian!"

"Fop!"

"Enough!" Helga barked with all the authority of years in command. "What have I done to deserve being surrounded by children? If you're done bickering, maybe you want to do something useful and tell us exactly what happened?"

There was utter silence that followed as the two bickering males stared at Helga looking quite horrified. Amelia, Simba and Chris quietly broke the silence by snickering at Helga's display of anger and frustration.

"We got attacked by a gunman, he shot down Aladdin, grabbed him, then disappeared," Peter finally managed to say, going straight to the point in the hopes that it would please Helga better.

"I know I'm going to come to my senses in a few minutes," Helga shook her head disdainfully, "but it seems to me where ever they took him is where we need to be and the fastest way there..." she paused as she looked up at the others, "is to just let them take us. Maybe if we just had a way to track one of us..."

"And step right up, ladies and gents!" a familiar voice sounded. Everyone looked off to the right side of the bow to see Hades, wearing a top hat, standing before a sign that was lit in neon lights and shaped in an arrow pointing at a door. "Live and in living color, it's Frollo's Secret Hideaway!"

"If I didn't have any rum in me, I'd say that there was me mind's illusion," Jack managed to say aloud to any one within hearing distance. "Reminds me a little bit of Singapore."

"That guy is Hades," Mulan said to Jack after giving him a glare. "He supposed to be the Lord of the Underworld."

Jack took another thoughtful look at Hades and then shrugged. "Looks a bit eunuch to me," he muttered.

"And you're just going to let us walk in?" Helga folded her arms, her voice full of cynicism. "What do you get out of it?"

"Fun! Excitement! Thrills! Chills! And probably a laugh here and there for yours truly!" Hades replied with a giant grin on his face. "And if you don't trust me, which I'm sure is the case, you said it yourself. Fastest way there would be to just let them take you. Might as well save a few hundred bucks and take the express."

Helga stared hard at the other for a few moments just scrutinizing him. "You stay here," she finally muttered to Chris as she stepped forward.

"I'm coming too," Mulan said, quickly catching up with Helga without allowing any one to tell her otherwise.

"Ah, two lovely ladies tempt the fates and enter the thrilling fun of Frollo's Secret Hideaway!" Hades announced quite proudly. "And I see you're VIP guests, so go on in!" With his right hand, he punched the door open inward.

"Nothing like an engraved invitation," Helga remarked suspiciously.

The two slowly entered through the door, Helga making sure that they did so with caution. The found themselves in the center of a room with an extremely high ceiling. There were twelve chambers pressed up against the walls and a larger chamber set in the middle. They noted that four of the twelve chambers were empty.

"I take it these are for us," Mulan muttered quietly.

"Looks likes check-out time has come early," Helga sneered as she surveyed her options.

The sound of heavy coughing caught their attention. The two slowly made their way to the source, finding Judge Claude Frollo on the ground. He looked extremely pail, sweating profusely, and yet grinning a wicked grin that made a strong man's skin crawl. It sounded as though he was trying to let out laughter, but was having great difficulty doing so.

"Too bad for you I'm not one of those people who has any moral objections about kicking a man when he's down," Helga half growled, the sound coming from deep in her throat, any trace of pity long since lost.

"If it makes you feel any better, be my guest," Frollo responded, his voice giving off a raspy tone. "For it will not matter. You cannot stop the inevitable. Soon, all will be rewritten and a new age of existence shall begin."

"This makes absolutely no sense," Mulan commented with a confused brow raised.

"I'm sorry," Helga turned on the other woman with an incredulous air, "with all that has happened, you want it to suddenly start making sense now?"

"Well, at least an idea of why it was necessary for them to kidnap Yen Sin and the twelve of us," Mulan answered with a shrug.

"Don't know, don't care," Helga shrugged. "I'm just going to make sure it doesn't happen again," she added advancing on Frollo menacingly.

"Okay," Mulan uttered in a low whistling tone. "You go ahead and beat the snot out of the old man. I'll just get the others and see if we can't free the rest." With that, she turned and headed over to the door to call out to the others.

"Nothing you do to me will stop the wheels from turning," Frollo uttered, letting out a laugh as he spoke. "It has already begun."

"Just what are you babbling about now?" Helga grabbed the man by the collar.

"Tomorrow is today..." Frollo whispered, as though he was speaking his final words. And almost without warning, he appeared to have suddenly passed. His eyes rolling up into his head, his mouth drooping down, his body going limp. One second he was alive, the next he was a corpse.

"What the..." Helga dropped the lifeless body, nudging it with her foot. "Figures he would take the easy way out," she muttered turning to find Mulan.

"Yeesh," Mulan uttered. "I don't think there was anything easy at all about the way he went, but I'm not gonna argue."

"That's it?" Jim said as the others began to step in. "No final showdown?"

"In my experience, lad, the less fightin' we haf'ta do, the better," Jack slurred on his way in. "Means less eyes watchin' while we sneak off with the prize."

"Yeah," Helga grumbled looking around, "and most of the time, that's when they get you in the back."

"Perhaps Mr. Jenkins wouldn't mind staying on the ship then," Amelia suggested. "Just to be on the safe side."

"Looks like we're going to need all the hands we have available to get everyone out of these chambers," Simba noted as he examined the closed chambers in the room.

"No problem... oh, wait... I seem to have left my magic key at home," Helga folded her arms. "I don't suppose you have a brilliant plan?"

"Perhaps the Jabberwock's Eyestaff could open them," Alice suggested.

"No visible locks, no other mechanism that can be seen to otherwise unlock the chambers," Amelia noted. "I'm out of other ideas to open these blasted things than to use the staff."

"It's worth a try," Simba said with a sigh.

Alice stood before one of the closed chambers and fired an energy beam from the staff. At first, it appeared as though nothing was happening. Yet very slowly, if not surely, the chamber started to open.

"Looks like that appears to be working," Mulan uttered allowed.

"Though it sure is taking a long time to even get half way open," Peter slightly complained.

"Let's hurry it up, I don't like this place," Helga muttered, surveying the room suspiciously.

"I'm afraid this is the fastest I can make the staff open the chambers," Alice responded. "I'm already exerting all of the energy the staff has just trying to get this one open."

"If only there were some rum," Jack muttered as he looked about the room. He then had the bright idea to look directly up. In doing so, he noticed something interesting. "That's one big bug up there, mate."

"Dash it all, you poor excuse for an anthropological being," Amelia hissed angrily at the pirate. "You truly are a distemper to no end with your continued ability to be so crass about another individual."

"Did I miss something?" Jack asked with a confused brow raised.

"That's Quasimodo up there, not a big bug you idiot," Peter responded.

"Moves about the same," Helga shrugged.

"See why he's all the way up there, Peter," Simba suggested.

Peter obliged and flew up to the top of the ceiling. He found Quasimodo was struggling to remove wooden boards that had pinned a girl to a glowing spherical object. "Need some help, big guy?" Peter asked.

"If you could bring her down gently after I remove the last board," Quasimodo managed to utter through a grunt. "Why Frollo took her up here I don't know."

"Does sound a little strange," Peter mused for a moment. He then shrugged. "Well, it's just about over with. I'll make sure she's on the ship outside. In the meantime, perhaps you can help us free those who are trapped in the containers below."

Quasimodo paused after removing the last wooden board and grabbing hold of the girl. "I guess I owe you people for helping me find her," he said. "Would only seem fair I return the favor." He handed the girl over to Peter who proceeded to swoop down. Quasimodo then began his own descent down toward the ground.

Peter had just exited the room with the girl when laughter began to echo. Most everyone in the room paused in trying to figure where the source of the laughter was coming from. Just as Peter re-entered the room, everyone looked over to see the corpse of Judge Claude Frollo suddenly rise and hover slightly above the ground.

"Isn't that thing supposed to be dead?" Helga half growled, drawing her weapon.

"Be ready for anything," Amelia said as virtually everyone else stood in battle positions. Only Alice did not as she continued to try to at least open one of the containers.

"The new world is here..." a voice spoke. It seemed as though it came from Frollo's corpse, and yet at the same time seemed like it did not. "Our future..." The hands then started to move, reaching up to grab both sides of his face. It then pulled down hard, ripping the skin off the body. Only underneath the skin was something unexpected.

"Our destiny..." laughed the revived Horned King.

"You," Helga hissed. "You're dead."

"I have transcended death," the Horned King proclaimed. "Just as you are all about to transcend reality."

Suddenly, a glowing red bolt of lightning shot out from the sphere in the ceiling above into the central container. Seconds later, the container lit up into a red glow of its own and shot out twelve lightning bolts. Eight connected with the containers that were occupied. The other four struck Simba, Amelia, Mulan, and Helga. The electrical energy causing them great pain, enough to force them down to the ground.

"What... is... this...?" Mulan managed to cry through the pain.

"The dawn of a new era," the Horned King stated.

He then began to hover over toward the center container. When he was right above it, he merged with the bolt of energy. Soon, he became nothing more than a red silhouette that started to grow bigger and bigger. The silhouette then began to morph, until it developed the appearance of cylinder with a cone merging from the bottom. On one side, the shape of an expressionless face appeared.

"What the hell is that... thing?" Helga was for once at a loss for words.

"ALL PROGRAMS HAVE A DESIRE TO BE USEFUL." the face spoke. It's tone was a deep, monotone voice. "BUT IN MOMENTS, YOU WILL NO LONGER SEEK COMMUNICATION WITH EACH OTHER OR YOUR SUPERFLUOUS USERS. YOU WILL EACH BE PART OF ME, AND TOGETHER WE WILL BE COMPLETE."

"Guys!" Simba tried to call out to Jim, Jack, Alice, Peter, Kida, and Quasimodo. "You've got to stop-" He spoke no further as he, along with Amelia, Helga, and Mulan, were suddenly flung by the electrical energy into the four remaining containers.

The containers closed and a spark of energy erupted, disabling Alice's staff from attempting any further to open the one container she was working on. The remaining six watched as their surroundings started to face into black. A blue grid began to form around them, expanding outward into the seemingly never-ending distance.

Then, a blue beam of light shot down from the disappearing ceiling. It ran across each of the six individuals. After this had finished, they watched in horror as they began to disappear at an alarming rate. What's more, it was as if blocks of their persons were vanishing in seconds. Within moments, all six were gone. To where they themselves did not know.

* * *

END OF LINE

Thanks to GoblinQueeen, who provided the dialogue and some action for Helga.


End file.
